On the Edge
by Fran.Orta
Summary: Life in a prestigious Ballet Academy is not as different as a normal high school experience as one may expect: Queen Bitches, Drugs, Alcohol, troubled love lives, and making it to class without a hair out of the bun. After all, the students are still in their teens. Follow Lucy Heartifilia, as she struggles with all these plus a few troubles of her own... (Summary change) (FirstFF)
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail and its characters. I only play with them and twist them to my own amusement *Insert evil, maniac laugh***

* * *

The soft, tranquil piano of Yiruma played through the earbuds. It made her relax. It always had. And damn, right now she needed to be relaxed.

Even with the music in full volume, she could hear the loud, fast thumping of her heart. Her hands sweated, and she was pretty sure her back was the same. And it wasn't because of the warm up routine she had just finished. No, she was just too nervous. And it wasn't unjustified, oh no. There were at least two hundred girls in the same situation she was.

_Breathe, Lucy, god, breath._

The pretty blonde was currently waiting to be called for the audition that would decide her future in the tough world of dance. She really wanted a spot. No. She _needed_ a spot.

Fairy Tail Academy of Classical and Contemporary Dance was the best in all Fiore. Hell, it could easily be one of the best in the whole world. It held the promise to make you the best you can ever be. Of course, you had to be dedicated. Every dancer knows that talent and good teacher can only take you so far. Especially when it comes to ballet.

To be a prima ballerina you need to be a one in a million. To be a prima ballerina assoluta you need to be one in a billion. But to her, it didn't matter. She didn't want fancy titles. She could live without ever being a principal. Hell, she would be happy being in the corps of a small, unknown company.

She just wanted to dance every day of the rest of her life, until her feet couldn't handle it anymore. And even there, she would push through the pain, and try, try until her last breath. Because, once you start ballet, once you dance, and know you want to do it for life, it becomes an obsession. A necessity. You do _plies _without noticing. Your feet are turned out, your back is as straight as a table, and your tummy is pulled in.

"Number 45, please come in for your classical variation" A voice said through the speaker which connected the classroom where the examiners were seeing the auditions, and the long, narrow hallway in which the dancers were waiting.

Lucy breathed in relief. She had zone out and didn't know in what number they currently were. She looked down to her black leotard and saw the paper clipped to it.

**84**

She could do this. She was talented, she knew that much. After all, she had a callback to audition in person.

With a tiny smile in her face, she remember the day the letter arrived to the little studio in her hometown.

_"__Lucy! Snap out of it!" The woman in front of her clapped her hands to wake her up of her trance state._

_"__Oh, sorry Ma'am. I was just thinking" She said, fidgeting with her slender fingers._

_"__Honey, c'mere. Stand in front of the mirror. Now tell me, what do you see?" She asked, with her arms around her shoulders. _

_In the mirror it stood the image of a gorgeous fifteen (almost sixteen) year old. Blonde hair firmly put in a tight bun. A small, round head, with big brown doe-like eyes, and full pink lips. Long neck, and legs for days. Every little aspect of her screamed ballerina. _

_Everyone had told her she had the ideal body type. She was a natural. But she'd never believe it. Her turned out could be better. Same for her extension with her right leg. Her arabesque could also be a little higher. Her feet weren't for ballet at all. Weak ankles, high arches yes, but less than ideal insteps. _

_"__Oh you ungrateful brat! I can see in your eyes what you are thinking. You are good enough for ballet! God gave you everything to dance. Enough of that insecurity, otherwise, you'll never get into Fairy Tale"_

_"__Madam, with all respect, I think you are a fool if you believe I'll get in. They have the best dancers around the country, and I'm definitely not one of them" Lucy said with her sad eyes fixed in the mirror. _

_"__Oh, well, then I guess this letter is garbage. I'll go throw it" _

_"__What?! What letter? Madam give to me! Wait!" Screamed Lucy while running towards her ballet teacher, and successfully tackling her to the ground and snatching the letter of her hand._

_"__Ouch, Lucy Heartfilia! What do you think you are doing! Tackling an old woman like that. I wasn't gonna throw it away you fool"_

_Lucy stuck her tongue out to her teacher. She looked at the letter in her hands. Shaking, she started to open. Her eyes flicked from one side to another, rapidly reading whatever it said._

_"__Well kid? Aren't you gonna tell this old woman…" Her sentence was interrupted with the loud scream, and new tackle from her blonde student "Damn it, Lucy, stop tackling me!"_

_"__I passed the preliminaries! I got an audition ma'am! I got it!" Happiness tears fell from her pretty brown eyes. _

_"__Oh my dear child! I knew it, I knew it! See? Oh dear, I'm sure your mom is so proud of you right now. And your dad! He is going to be so happy for you, I'm sure"_

_Lucy now frowned, worry instead of happiness clouded her expression._

_"__Yeah, I hope so"_

Lucy flinched at the memory. Oh, how she wished her deceased mother Layla Heartfilia could be there for her.

Many people had told her how she was a carbon copy of Layla. Told her about how they looked, and acted the same. Her mother had been an aspiring dancer, but before her career took flight, she fell in love with Jude Heartfilia, and then, a few months later, she was pregnant with Lucy.

Layla died when Lucy was barely seven. But when Lucy took her first ballet class at age three, she couldn't have been happier. People told Lucy that ever since she got pregnant, she had prayed for her child to love dancing as much as she did. And that when she found out she was to have a girl, she couldn't wait for her to walk and start ballet. That she wished for her little Lucy to be in the biggest stages around the world, and to accomplish everything she couldn't. Of course, as long as it was her little girl's wishes too.

On the other hand, Jude Heartfilia, didn't want the complicated life of a dancer for her sweet little girl. He was a famous businessman, he was strict, and tried to get her daughter everything she wanted. He agreed to dance classes because he considered it to be a good hobby to kill time. Never once the thought of Lucy being a professional ballerina crossed his mind.

Lucy knew she was smart. She studied at an all-girls private school, and was always in the top five of best grades. She was a shoo-in for Edolas University, the top ranked university in all Fiore. She also once heard her Dad had decided that after she finished her studies, she would take over his company, so he could retire, and wait leisurely for him to be reunited with Layla in heaven.

But for Lucy, that would not be living. She needed to dance, and so, she went with her head held high to talk to Jude to tell him that she had gotten an audition at the top ballet academy of the country.

She grimaced as the images formed in her head.

_"__Dad?" She knocked softly on the door that leaded to his office._

_"__Come in, darling" Jude's voice reached Lucy's ears, and that was all it took for her heart to start beating fast in anticipation._

_Lucy went into the enormous room Jude used for work in general and private meetings. She sit in front of him, once again fidgeting with her hands._

_"__What is it Lucy? Make it quick, I have a meeting in ten minutes" Jude said, his eyes searching in her face any sign of what she wanted to tell him._

_"__Um, Dad? I…" She took a deep breathe, trying to calm her nerves "Igotanauditionforballetacademy" She breathed all out in an incomprehensible set of words._

_"__Lucy! Breathe, relax, and then speak. I couldn't get a word you were saying"_

_"__I said, I got an audition. For a Professional Ballet Academy"_

_Jude's pen fell out of his hand to the ground with a tiny noise that reverberated through the room. Outside you could hear the flap of the birds as they fled to their nests since the sun was already setting. No one said anything for a couple minutes, and Lucy was getting restless as the clocked ticked in an annoying way._

Finally, Jude started laughing, in a hysterical way.

"D…Dad?"

_"__Oh god! Lucy, what a good joke. Took me a while to figure out if what you were saying was true but, oh, good one kiddo"_

Lucy clenched her fists as she glared at her father.

"It is not a joke, father" She hissed through her teeth.

"Ex… Excuse me?"

_"__I said, it's no joke, father. A month ago I sent an application to Fairy Tail Academy of Dance. Today a letter arrived. They want me to audition in a month in Magnolia. Dad, please, listen to me. I want to be a ballerina. It's my dream! I don't want to take over you company, I wanna dance. Just like mom. So, I'm asking you… No, begging you, to support me in this" She put everything in her eyes, pleading her to help her, to encourage her. To tell her that she can do it._

_Jude pressed his lips together, a frown forming in between his eyebrows. After a while, he looked at Lucy, how she was trying not to cry, how she was begging him silently through her eyes to be with her in this decision. _

_A sigh left his mouth._

_"__Fine. You may go. But…" His eyes met hers, a serious look in them "I want you to be the best. I do not expect less than perfect from my daughter. And if you do not get in, you quit this childish dream, and go to college"_

_Lucy, knowing the full implications of her father's words, nodded. She needed him to support her financially speaking and it meant, that he didn't want his money to go waste. After all the academy wasn't cheap. Unfortunately, that support meant he owned her, and her dancing._

"Number 84? Number 84?"

Lucy snapped out of her thoughts. 84. It was her turn.

Her hands started shaking as she stood up to walk to the audition room.

Oh god she couldn't breathe! What was going on with her? She wanted to yell, to cry, and to get out there.

How could she think she was good enough for this? She wasn't.

She didn't have the ideal body. She didn't have good feet. Her technique was barely average. Her extensions weren't as good as Madame Sylvia told her. She was not a ballerina, she wasn't her mother, she wasn't Layla Heartfilia.

"Last call for number 84"

_You can do it, because you are my daughter._

Lucy gasped as she heard the soft, sweet voice of her mother. She smiled as she remembered when she heard her say that. The first time she went to ballet class. She was so scared, but her mom gave her the confidence to go, and after that, she never let go. And that, the encourage of her mother, even if it was a product of her imagination, was all she needed to gather strength and enter the room in where some strangers would decide her future in the world of Ballet.

She pushed the door open, smiling, as she stood in the center of the room.

There were three persons seated, trying to order a bit the mess that lay on the table; on it there were three plaques, with the names of each. A middle age woman, sat in the left chair, her pink hair was pulled in a tight bun, and had a stern look in her face. _Mistress Porlyusica _read the plaque in front of her.

In the middle, an aged man sat. He was a little on the shorter side, and it was hard to believe but his posture gave away his profession rather easily. Probably in his younger years, he was an extraordinary dancer. _Master Makarov._

In the right, was a well-known person and Lucy couldn't believe her eyes. Mirajane Strauss, Principal dance of the Ishgal Theater, one the best ballet companies in the world, was right there, smiling while looking as flawless as she did on her shows. She was the youngest dancer to embody Odette and Odile in the Swan Lake production of the Ishgal. She was barely twenty when that happened.

"Your name, age, and variation you are going to perform, child" Mistress Porlyusica said, her sever voice drew Lucy out of her trance.

"Um, yeah, I mean, yes. Lucy Heartfilia, age sixteen, and I'll be performing the variation from the first act of Giselle"

Master Makarov smiled. "Good luck my dear"

Lucy nodded, and did a little bow.

Now or never.

The lively music started and Lucy run around on her toes, softly; a smile never leaving her face.

According to the story, Giselle was a girl who wasn't allowed to dance, because of her weak condition, but she loved it dearly, so everyday behind her mother's back she would happily dance in town, and everybody was mesmerized by her. After all, she was also the most beautiful girl in town. Lucy wanted to pour everything of her into the dance. She wanted to be Giselle.

She remembered every step of the variation. And when she went on pointe with her supporting leg, her whole weight resting in the tip of her toes, and the other went up behind her in a little more than a hundred degrees, and then went flat to a penche, she knew she could do it. She knew she could nail it.

Step after step, turn after turn, everything went perfectly good. In that moment she knew there wasn't a thing she could. She didn't feel the pain in her back that usually nagged her when she went overboard with the extension on the attitudes. She didn't feel the blisters on her feet, nothing.

The little hops at nearly the end were the hardest. It had to be done softly, the arms had to be moving prettily around. It had to look effortless. Then came the pique turns in circle at the very end. That was it. She had it so close she could taste it.

She wasn't Lucy Heartfilia. For those two minutes she was Giselle, a town girl who loved to dance.

The music finished as she came down to her left knee, her arms outstretched and the smile in her face never once leaving her beautiful face.

Master Makarov had a strange smile in his face, Mistress Porlyusica was nodding rather seriously, a little frown in her face, and Mirajane Strauss, Principal of one of the best ballet companies in the world, was smiling and clapping at her.

"Thank you, Miss Heartfilia. At the end of the week, we'll post the results of the auditions"

With that, Lucy bowed once again, said a quick thank you, and left, catching the little wink Miss Strauss gave her before leaving.

Her heart was beating fast, she still hadn't caught her breath, but right now, nothing could bring Lucy down. It didn't matter if she didn't get in. She did her best, she performed clean, and she knew it.

Now, she just needed to wait.

* * *

Phew! I never once thought I would have the courage to upload something ! It's my first fic, so be patient :D And yes, I'm a ballet dancer, with a lot of time since I'm right now, in the middle of nowhere with my family recovering from a bad fracture :( . And no, english is definitely not my first language.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail. I just play with its characters, and twist them to my own amusement.**_

* * *

Lucy arrived to the room in the hotel she was staying in. She was exhausted. It had been a long day indeed. After all, auditions, especially those to get into an important Ballet Academy were always tiring.

She smiled as she ran hot water to fill the bathtub. She deserved a relaxing moment after all. Her feet where destroyed, as were her pointe shoes. She would need new ones. And harder ones definitely. These had barely last her a week.

She hissed when she got in. The blisters in her feet were on a whole new level after wearing the pointes for the whole day. She knew she should have taken them off while she waited her turn after the morning class and the contemporary part.

She smiled to herself. It had been a good day, aside the nerves, and the blisters, she got to live the atmosphere of Fairy Tail Academy, and she couldn't wait for the results.

If she got in, she could finally dance every day, every hour of the day. She could have friends that had the same goals as her. And maybe, just maybe, she could have a ballet boyfriend. Contrary to the popular belief, not all male ballet dancers were homosexual. And besides, they had the perfect body: not too bulgy and not too skinny.

She giggled like the school girl she was. Yeah sure, she needed to focus in her classes. So no time for boys.

She stayed in the tub until the water started to get cold. She dried herself, and put the bath robe on.

It was just 7 pm, and even though she was tired, she wasn't sleepy, so she put on some workout clothes and started to stretch her already flexible muscles. With her earbuds on, she zoned out and relaxed into the routine she had done for a couple years already.

While on her front splits, Lucy felt her iPhone vibrating.

_Madame Sylvia _read the screen.

"Hello?" Answered Lucy, while changing into a more comfortable position to talk to her ballet mistress.

"_Lucy! My child, how it went!? Tell me everything" _Lucy laughed at the enthusiasm her dear ballet teacher had in her voice.

"It went okay, I guess. The class was normal, you know, barre, a little center, the typical. After that we had to show our contemporary variations. I did okay I think, contemporary isn't my strength you know.

"_Oh yes, I know, darling, I know. You just can't let go, can you?" _Madame Sylvia sighed.

"I guess, but oh, the classical variation went so perfect Madam. I didn't falter at the end like I usually do. The piques felt so good! And when I finished, I felt it! Perfection. For the first time in my life, I felt it"

_"__Oh, darling! I am so happy you did well. I know in 4 years you'll be at Ishgal dancing Swan Lake just like Mirajane Strauss!"_

"Oh my! Madam Sylvia, Mirajane was there! In the audition, she was part of the admission staff! She was so beautiful, I wished you could've been there"

_"__Child, I wish I was there, but to see you though. I have seen Miss Strauss many times when taking you to Ishgal" _She said with a chuckle "_Okay, honey, you have to rest now. Your father called to say he was going to be outside the country. Told me to wish you good luck. Bye"_

"Bye Madam Sylvia. Take care" And with that the line went blank.

Lucy sighed into the floor, after all, she had never gotten up while she talked.

_"__So father left again, uh? Well, nothing to do! I promised I would be the best if I got in!"_

And while smiling in her fighting stance, a loud growl was heard.

"But first I gotta eat something"

Lucy put on her pink running sneakers, grabbed her little black purse and left the hotel – where the food was way too expensive, and she needed to save for pointes – and started searching for a place to eat something.

People tend to think ballerinas are anorexic and don't eat anything. And while that might be true in some cases, mostly it wasn't. In fact, they ate a lot, but burned everything when dancing. They did, however, try to eat healthy; after all, you need energy to dance, and energy came from food, and when this was full of sugars, and bad fats, it was really useless.

But today, Lucy was going to step out of her healthy circle and eat something full of sugars. Not caring how she was gonna regret it after. While walking, she came face to face with a burger joint.

Inside it was full of people, majorly teenagers. It was a loud lively place, and Lucy loved it. It made her smile, even though her face was already hurting of how much she had smiled.

However, what she really hated from going to places, was the looks she got. She knew she was skinny. It was kind of the norm of ballet. After all you had to look ethereal to dance classical. And she wasn't anorexic, she loved food, but when you put together the fact that she danced 6 times a week 3 hours each day, and her fast metabolism, well, the result was a body full of lean muscle. And of course, turned out feet like duck, and a straight back that screamed: "I'm an uptight bitch"

The cashier was a middle age woman with kind, warm chocolate eyes. She smiled at Lucy after eyeing her.

Lucy was grateful she didn't judge her because of her small frame, and smiled at the woman as she ordered her food.

While waiting for it, she heard a loud laugh.

She turned around, and saw a group of teens around her age. But that wasn't what made Lucy keep looking at the little crew. No, there was a boy in there specifically that attracted Lucy's eyes to them. A really handsome boy, with dark green eyes, and _pink_ hair tied in little pony tail, who was the owner of the loud laugh that made her turn around at first.

The group was composed of 6 members, all quite unique looking. First there was a beautiful girl, with scarlet hair. From where she stood, Lucy could see her hand holding the one of a blue haired guy, whose face she couldn't see. In front of those two, there was a small contexture girl, with short white haired, and pretty blue eyes; her resemblance with Mirajane was really shocking. For all she knew, they could be sisters. The handsome boy who had cached her eye, had his arm around the girl.

Lucy could almost see the disappointment in her own eyes. He was taken.

Finally, there was a dark haired guy, who somehow, was shirtless, and being yelled at, courtesy of the scarlet beauty, to put something on. Next to the seemingly stripper guy, there was a tiny blue haired girl wearing a little headband to hold her hair out of her face. She was like a little fairy come straight out of children's tale.

And that is when it her. She was so busy, ogling the pink haired guy that he didn't realized that each of those unique characters had one thing in common.

They were all dancers. Ballet dancers, to be specific.

They held that air. The posture, the way they laughed, and the way they held their arms. Everything about that group screamed ballet, and in fact, screamed Fairy Tail level dancers. La crème de la crème.

Oh shit, no way in hell she was going to get in. She wasn't like that, she didn't fit with those people! If the students were all like that, there was no possibility for her in Fairy Tail, she was doomed to go back to her town, and school and finally college to take over her father's company one day.

With tears in her eyes, she grabbed her food and walked briskly towards the door, determined to once in the hotel, pack everything and leave for good Magnolia. After all, there wasn't anything there for her.

She was so busy in her self-pity party that she didn't notice the boy who was going towards the door, and end up bumping into him, and falling flat to her butt.

Oh great, that was the last thing she needed, another bruise.

"Shit! I'm sorry, didn't see you there"

Lucy looked up and saw the gorgeous boy she had previously been eye-stalking offering her a hand to get up. Next to him, the Mirajane clone, was frowning, clearly, not liking her seemingly boyfriend being friendly with the blonde girl in the floor.

"Uh, no, no really, it's my fault. I, uh, I didn't see where I was going" Lucy took the hand the handsome stranger offered and got up easily.

"Huh, you're really light" The stranger said while examining her. "Oh, I got it! The Academy's Audition week. You are a ballerina right?!" The stranger grinned in a friendly way, and Lucy wanted to melt right there.

He was too cute.

"Natsu! Hurry up. I promised sister that I would be there soon to help her with some files"

_"__Oh, so his name is Natsu. Suits him well" _

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming, well, I'll guess I'll see you around?" Natsu asked, with his hand messing with some bangs around his eyes.

Lucy got tongue tied, and couldn't answer, so she just smiled and shrugged.

"See? She doesn't wanna to talk to you, now come on! You are my lift" Mirajane's clone whined while taking Natsu's hand in tugging him.

Lucy stayed there, glued to the floor, without knowing why in hell she was so stupid. Why couldn't she answer? Oh no, she knew. She just wasn't good enough for him. She wasn't even worthy of talking to him.

He was just too perfect, and she was well, she.

She finally left the burger joint, and started walking towards the hotel. Once in her room, she ate half the burger, and munch some fries. She was no longer hungry.

Well, the hotel was paid, so what was the problem in staying until the end of the week? It wouldn't hurt anyone. After all, she at least needed to know how bad she ranked in the auditions.

She lay down in her bed, and for the second time in an hour, Lucy Heartfilia started crying.

The following days, Lucy stayed in bed. It was one day away from the posting of the results. She was starting to get anxious, and she hated the feeling. She knew what happened when she got anxious and it wasn't pretty. In fact, she already knew somewhere in her arms was a little friction wound already.

She knew she had nothing to get anxious for. After all, she knew she failed. There was no way Fairy Tail Academy would want her. She was skinny, but didn't had the pretty body type Mirajane's clone had. She didn't had the perfect posture the scarlet beauty had. And she didn't even had the grace the little fairy-like girl had.

She wasn't even near the level of those girls, and they looked to be the same age. How in the world had she felt so confident after her audition? She shouldn't have gotten her hopes up. She should have known better.

_"__Stop it Lucy! Don't think like that"_

She stood up and walk to the bathroom. Once in there she looked herself in the mirror and start reciting what her psychologist told her to when her depression and anxiety crisis attacked.

Her reflection looked back, she had puffy red eyes, and was a little pale. She hadn't sleep much these last days. Too many nightmares. She took deep breath and start talking to the mirror.

"You, Lucy Heartfilia are good enough. You are perfect the way you are. You are beautiful, and strong, and have an ethereal, ideal ballet body type. You were born to do this, you know it, Madam Sylvia knows it, Mom knew it, and hell even dad knows it! So put your shit together, because you are going to be a ballerina. No matter what Fairy Tail says: You. Are. Good. Enough"

Finally feeling better after 3 days of moping around, she smiled and took a little shower. The hot water relaxed her tense muscles, and the vanilla smell of her shampoo did wonders for her mind.

Since the death of her mother, Lucy had had hard time dealing with her emotions, and when they become too much for her to handle, she has what her psychologist calls stress anxiety. Anxiety was very common, but in Lucy's case who liked to have control of her feelings, it was too much, and without noticing, she would scratched herself to bleed.

Yes, it wasn't pretty. She took pills for a while but supposedly her problem had gotten a little better.

_"__Uh, I wonder what my psychologist think about a ballet academy"_

It is of public knowledge that ballet academies are stressful as hell, and that you had to be mentally healthy, and tough to be in one. The competiveness nature of it made it hard for weak minded people to go as they can break down and collapse in any moment.

Even the strongest sometimes would end up really messed up in exam week. After all, ballet had this pressure no other dance genre has. It eats you, from the inside out.

Lucy shook her head, trying to dissipate her dark thought. They did no one good, so better keep them locked up with seven keys and under a two hundred pounds rock.

After her usual quick stretch, Lucy decided it was a good day to go for a walk. After all, the weather was quite nice. Warm, with those pretty puffy clouds you see on photographs.

Lucy stepped outside. She was still in her work out clothes: black leggings, a black spaghetti strap leotard, and pink running sneakers. To keep her body from the cold she had her favorite sweatshirt on. It was oversized, light pink and it said in bold big letters in the front "ETOILE ACADEMY" and behind, in a circular form it said "MERMAID HEEL, CLASS OF 2017"

It was from the trip they made to the beach with her classmates. Even if she didn't like much school, she still had many friends, who would usually blame her for being too busy with her ballet classes. Sometimes, when she could, they would sneak out to the shopping center in town, or to a karaoke.

Oh, how she missed them. Well, it's not like she wasn't going to see them again. After all, tomorrow was her last day in Magnolia.

She groaned, closed her eyes, slam her head against the nearest wall she had "Stop it Lucy! Stop with the depressing thoughts already!" She whispered, trying to clean her mind once again.

"Doesn't that hurt a little?"

Lucy snapped her eyes open and turned around to see who the owner of the voice was, even if something told her she already knew that.

And yup, she was right. There he was, his tan skin showing through the red tank top he was wearing, along with some black pants which were rolled until the half of his calf. He was probably working out, because she could see little drops of sweat down his neck. And no, he didn't looked gross.

He look too damn hot. This much perfection couldn't be healthy for her already damaged sanity.

"Hola? Are you okay?" He now frowned, his warm hand touching her forehead, probably looking for some temperature.

That was all Lucy needed to wake up from her trance.

"I'm fine" She said, a blush creeping out from her neck. She swatted his hand away. God, she needn't make a fool of herself once again in front of this guy.

"Alright" He held up his hands in surrender. Suddenly a flash of recognition crossed his eyes "Oh, you are that girl! From the other day at Yajima's! Hey, I'm Natsu" He held his out for her to shake.

Lucy looked at the hand and debated on whether introduce herself, or get the fuck away from there. She sighed as she decided on the former.

"Hi, I'm Lucy" She said with a little smile on her face, taking his hand. A shot of electricity run through her hand so she pulled out quickly. She didn't notice the little look and frown Natsu showed after losing contact.

"Nice to meet you. Um, uh, I wanted to apologize, for the other day. I kinda bombarded you with questions, and besides, Lisanna was also rather rude"

_"__Lisanna? Oh, that must Mirajane's clone." _

"Don't worry. It's okay, you were curious"

Natsu grinned the same friendly way he did when she first saw him. God it was so adorable.

"So? Are you?"

"Am I what?" Lucy knew what he was talking about but decided for the healthy way of playing dumb.

"A ballerina? That's why you are in town right? Fairy Tail's audition"

"Oh! That, uh, I guess you can say that, yeah. But I don't think I got in" She admitted with a sad laugh.

"You kidding right?" Lucy looked into his dark green eyes, and frowned, not liking his tone one bit.

"No I am not kidding, and it's not of your business, so. Goodbye" She turned away and starting walking fast, wanting to get away as fast as she could. Unfortunately, Natsu was taller than her, and rapidly caught up.

"Hey, Lucy, wait! I'm sorry. It's just, I can't believe you think you didn't get in. How come you don't have confidence? I mean, look at you"

Look at her? What the hell did this guy meant? She looked at her. She saw her reflection every day in the mirror and analyze every detail of her body. She knew how she looked. She wasn't Fairy Tail material.

Oh good God, there it was again. That little voice in her head saying she wasn't good enough. Why couldn't she believe in herself the way this stranger did?

"Well, that's it I guess" Natsu frowned. Why was this girl so hard to talk to? "I hope you get in, it would be nice to have someone new. I'm a dancer too. Upper School, first year. Been in Fairy Tail since I was nine"

"Wow, that's a very long time and yeah, it would be nice to get in, but, I don't know, I guess I'll see tomorrow. Anyway, nice to meet you Natsu"

"You too Lucy"

He watched the pretty, thin ballerina walk away from him, and he couldn't help the fast beating of his heart.

He had the amazing feeling that this year was going to be very interesting.

He watched as Lucy turned around at the distance, and when she caught his eye, she turned around quickly, embarrassed.

_"__Very interesting, indeed"_

* * *

**Hey guys! I just wanted to thank you for the support! I never thought one person would follow this story, less alone 16 ! So thank you ! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review, commenting on whether you like it, or hate it, or whatever! **


	3. Chapter 3

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail. I just play with its characters and twist them to my own amusement.**_

**Hi hi! Thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed and finally, favorited the story. I really appreciate it. Hope you enjoy this chapter, I apologize in advance for any grammar/spelling mistake. Remember that, unfortunately, english is not my first language. **

* * *

The sun hit the sleeping face of Lucy. She groaned as she realized had forgotten once again to close the curtains.

Oh shit. Shit. Shitshitshit. Today was it.

The results were up today.

"Time, what time is it?" She asked out loud, while reaching for her phone which was somewhere in between the sheets. "There you are. And you have no battery. Great"

She plugged her phone into the white charger that was connected behind the also white nightstand, and then wait for her damn iPhone to turn on. After what she felt like hours, but was in fact, just a few minutes she was finally able to see what time it was.

**_12.15_**

"Holy fuck! Results are up in an hour!" With a jump she was out of bed, and into the bathroom to take a fast shower.

_"__Damn it Lucy, remember to breathe" _She reminded herself after feeling a little dizzy. And she thought the nerves before the audition were bad. These were ten times worse, if not more.

She washed her hair with a handful of shampoo, in hopes the smell of soft vanilla would help her relax. Guess what? It didn't.

Nothing could help her calm right now. She knew she should've bought some clonazepam. Right now she was about to have a nervous breakdown. She had to get out of there and run to Fairy Tail to see if she had gotten a spot.

After scrubbing her body clean, she dried herself with the fluffy white towel, and changed into some sport clothes. Black stirrup leggings, a black tank top which read "Eat, sleep, dance" and her usual sweatshirt and sneakers. Her blonde hair was still wet, and put into a neat bun flat to her head.

She took her phone from the nightstand, and read once again the time.

**_12.45_**

She still had half an hour to get there, so she exited the hotel, and decided she would grab something to eat at the coffee shop down the street, and then go to Fairy Tail.

While walking down the street, she finally let her mind go in whatever direction it wanted to go. Her eyes went up to the sky. The weather was a little cold today, some gray clouds getting close from the east.

"Is it a bad omen?" She thought out loud, a little sigh leaving her lips. She suddenly felt an itch to scratch herself, but she knew she couldn't. It was going to do more damage than good.

She spotted the coffeehouse, and went in. It was really warm inside, people lining to get a hot cup of coffee. Apparently it had been a while since it was this cool. Lucy let her eyes roam over the cute and quite big place. Some comfy looking couches were placed around glass tables, and there were two modern looking fireplaces at each side of the place.

She ordered a large cappuccino, and two croissant for take-out.

She was ready to leave, when a flash of red cached her eye. The scarlet girl of the burger joint passed through the doors of the place, hand in hand with the blue haired guy. Lucy hadn't seen the face of the boy that day, and now that she did, she noticed how handsome he was (honestly, what was with these town and its people?!). But that wasn't what stood out, no. It was the intricate red tattoo that he had on his face.

Following the couple, there was the dark haired guy and… Natsu.

Fuck.

This town was way too small. How come every day she decided to get out of her hotel room, she had to come face to face with the cute pink haired guy?

The little blue haired girl was nowhere to be seen, and neither was Mirajane's clone. Lisanna was it?

Cursing her sweatshirt for not being a hoodie, and her damn blonde hair for standing out so much, she grabbed the paper brown bag, and tried to run away from the place without being noticed.

Of course, luck was not on her side, after all, when it was?

"Hey! Lucy!"

She grimaced, and turned around, a tight smile on her face.

"Natsu, hey. Uh, I was just leaving. You know, big day today, so, yeah. Bye" She said everything in one breath, and got ready to run away, but of course, the pink haired boy wouldn't let her.

"Don't worry about that! They always post the results half an hour later. Why don't you let me introduce you the guys here?"

Lucy sighed in defeat, knowing there was no way she was going to be able to exit the place without Natsu chasing her. And well, a few minutes couldn't hurt right? Even if those few minutes were going to be spent with four gorgeous ballet students who looked right out of a Dance Catalogue. "Sure, lead the way!" She exclaimed with fake enthusiasm. Of course, Natsu didn't even notice, and grinned in that childish and adorable way Lucy was starting to love.

The three teens were already seated in one of the couches, paper cups on their hands, and one placed on the table.

"Guys, this is Lucy. She's auditioning for Fairy Tail's Upper School"

"Hey guys" Said Lucy with a tiny smile.

The pretty redhead, smiled and stood up, holding her hand out. "Hi. Erza Scarlet. Fairy Tail Upper School, second year. Excited for the results today?"

"I guess excited is one word for it,"

Erza looked at her with sympathy. "It is a hard position to be in, I guess," She pointed the blue haired guy, "This is Jellal Fernandes, second year too,"

Jellal smiled and said a quick hi. Finally, Erza pointed the dark haired guy, "That's Gray, he's starting Upper School this year, along with Natsu"

Gray acknowledge her with a nod, and a little smile. "Yo!"

Natsu tugged Lucy's hand so she would sit. She did, and tried to relax, so she could start a conversation.

Fortunately, the redhead beat her to the punch. "How long have you been dancing?" She asked, curiosity showing in her pretty face.

Lucy frowned, doing the mathematics in her mind. "10 years? Give it or take. My mom wanted to sign me up as soon as I started walking but I had to be five to enroll,"

"Oh, you mom was a ballet enthusiast then?"

Lucy laughed. "No, she just was as obsessed as any other ballerina with the idea of her daughter following her steps,"

They all laughed wholehearted at the comment. It was well known that every dancer would want for their children to take the path of dancing.

"What about you guys? What age did you enter Fairy Tail?"

Gray was the first to answer. "I got into Fairy Tail when I was 10. Met that pink haired idiot sit by your side. My mom died and her dying wish was for me to be a dancer like my grandpa. My dad almost had a heart attack when I told him I wanted to do ballet. So, I started private lessons at 7, and here I am"

"Oh, I'm sorry for you loss" Lucy said. She knew how hard it was to grow up without a mom. Probably to grow up without a parent.

Gray shrugged "Thanks, but, s'okay. I miss her, but she wouldn't want me moping around the corners"

There was a silence until Jellal cleared his throat, "I got into Fairy Tail last year. It was my salvation. If it wasn't because headmaster Makarov help me, I would be in juvie. Made some bad decisions in life, but I'm good now. I found a light, and an escape in dancing"

Erza smiled "And you are amazingly talented. After all, you caught up with all of us in the blink of an eye"

Jellal kissed her head. "It helped to have an amazing teacher."

Lucy almost die right there because of how cute those two were. Of course, she was the only one. She heard Natsu gagged as he said "On with the story!"

"Thanks guys, I just got a cavity" complained Gray with a shudder.

Erza glared at both of them, and they freeze in their seats, and gulped loudly as they start admiring their cups.

"What about you Erza?" Lucy asked, trying to keep her distracted from the idiotic pair.

"My parents died when I was two. My relatives left me at the Tower of Heaven orphanage. It was rough growing up there. But once, the nana of the place took us all to the Ishgal theatre. It was a free performance. We watched Cinderella and I fell in love with it. Next thing I knew, I was being adopted by this sweet old man, Rob. He enrolled me in ballet lessons as soon as I asked. I was nine when I won the scholarship for Fairy Tail, and rest, is history"

"Wow, that's tough. I shouldn't have asked. I'm so sorry," Lucy wanted to slap herself, and then tape her mouth so she couldn't speak again.

"It's okay. All of us have come in terms with our pasts. After all, it made us who we are," Jellal smiled at her, reassurance that everything was fine.

"We've all told our stories. So, why don't you tell yours Natsu, uh?" Gray smirked in his direction, teasing dripping his words.

Natsu blushed, and tried to cover it with his hand. "I already told her I got in when I was 9. There's not much than that"

"Oh come on, _Dragneel_! We all know it's not true"

Lucy's brain took one little moment to process what Gray had just said.

DRAGNEEL?!

"Holy mother of…! Dragneel?! As in Igneel and Grandine Dragneel?" Lucy exclaimed astonished, looking at Natsu in shock, who now was looking in other direction.

He smiled at her sheepishly, one hand messing his hair. Lucy realized it was a nervous habit of his.

"Yeah, they are my folks. Quite small the ballet industry, huh?"

Of course he was going to be so perfect! Natsu was the son of the golden couple of Ballet. They retired ten years ago and Lucy didn't have the pleasure of seeing them live, but she had however, seen every DVD they had been on. They were a legend, and apparently Natsu had inherited the best genes of each.

"Gray! Stop teasing Natsu!" The redhead slapped his head hard, making Gray cry out in pain.

"Fuck Erza! That hurts!"

"Then you should have stopped mocking Natsu. You are best friends, so behave"

"Me?! Friends with this hot headed idiot?!"

"What?! Friends with little ice princess?!"

Natsu and Gray glared at each other, and didn't notice Erza stand up and hit them both in the head.

"I said, BEHAVE yourselves"

"A-Aye Erza"

Lucy couldn't hold it anymore and laugh out loud. For the first time in this week she really laughed with everything she's got.

That last until she realized it was two in the afternoon already.

"Shit! The results!" She jump out of the couch, and gathered her things "I'm sorry everyone, it was nice meeting you! Bye!"

"Lucy wait! I'll come with you" Natsu stood up and said his goodbyes, and started walking along with Lucy.

"You don't have to Natsu! Really"

"I wanna go. Haven't been there since the term ended" He smiled at her, and then grabbed her arm and start running, "Come on! Hurry up, you don't wanna miss the posting"

"N-Natsu! Wait you idiot! I'm going to fall!" Lucy was trying to keep up with the pink haired boy but damn it, it was easy to stumble with the force the idiot was using.

After 10 minutes of intense, fast running, they made it to the principal hall of the academy. Lucy was trying to catch her breath, while Natsu just stood there, watching her. Not even a little sweat was in his skin.

"Your stamina sucks Luce"

Lucy stop gasping for air, and looked at him with wide eyes and pink cheeks.

"Did you just give a pet name?"

Natsu shrugged. "It's either that or Luigi"

Lucy blushed harder; she knew her face was now of crimson red. "I-Idiot! My name is Lucy!" She yelled, flustered.

Natsu just laughed, and took her hand in his. "Come on, this way"

Lucy couldn't believe this guy. Why did he looked so comfortable with so much physical contact? Didn't he have a girlfriend? And she was sure that the white haired girl didn't like her already, even if she didn't even know her yet.

Natsu walked at a fast pace, and lead her through the hallways of the academy. They arrived to a door, which Lucy knew led to where she was yesterday. She started trembling, and biting her lip hard.

"Hey, relax" Whispered Natsu, giving her hand a squeeze.

They entered the new hallway, and there at the end there was a list posted in the door of the room she auditioned. There was a lot of people mostly crying.

_"__Shh, it's okay, you can try next year"_

_"__Mom? Mom! I got in!"_

_"__You can try other place, don't worry"_

_"__Maybe dancing isn't your thing, sweety"_

_"__You could always try Magnolia's University dance program!"_

Lucy felt her heart tighten. She couldn't do this. She couldn't face all of her dreaming crashing down. She already saw her mom die, she didn't want to see her dream go the same way.

"Luce, Luce, look at me"

Lucy's eyes met Natsu's. His gaze was intense; trying to calm her down he put his hands on either side of her cheeks.

"I'll read it okay? Everything is going to be okay"

Lucy nodded, and did everything in her power to not let the tears that were pooling in her eyes escape.

"Let's go,"

They walked down the hallways, towards the door. Lucy couldn't stop her nervous shaking. She was terrified of reading what was written on the little piece of paper. Everything seemed to slow down. She could hear her heart beating furiously against her ribs. She could also hear the cries of the people around her, all of them now carrying a shattered dream.

She didn't notice when they arrived. Natsu gave her one last squeeze before start reading the list. Her breathing stopped. She gritted her teeth, and close her eyes, waiting for the news.

Natsu gave once last glance to the nervous blonde, and start reading the piece of paper. Fifteen names were written on it, a lot more than every other year, he realized.

He scrunched his eyebrows in concentration, looking for the name of the pretty girl who currently had her eyes closed.

His eyes widened.

Lucy finally opened her eyes, and looked at Natsu in anticipation.

"So? Did I make it?"

Natsu looked at her, and squeeze her into a tight hug.

Lucy was left in front of the roster, she stared at the list, and started reading it. Once she finished, she couldn't believe her eyes. Tears start flowing freely down her face, as she hugged Natsu back with all of her strength.

"I'm in" she whispered, her voice barely audible, "I'm in," she repeated to herself, the words feeling strange in her mouth. She couldn't even convince herself of what was happening.

"Yeah, you did. I told ya you would, didn't I?" Natsu felt Lucy nodding into his chest as happiness tears wetted his shirt.

Lucy couldn't believe it. Years of hard work, of blisters, of pushing through injuries. Everything lead to this moment. Finally, her hard work had paid off. She was in. In a few weeks, she was going to be taking classes with the best teachers. Now, there was an actual probability of her being someone in the ballet world.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail. I just play with its characters, and twist them to my own amusement.**_

* * *

Chapter 4.

The weeks following the announcement of the new students who were going to be part of the new term were quite hazy in Lucy's mind. After she found out she had gotten in along with other fourteen students, she thought everything was going to be fairly easy. At the end, it wasn't.

She had to go back to her town, get her things ready and packed, and also, she had to wait for her father to get back from his business trip so he could sign the papers and pay the not-so-cheap tuition.

Madam Sylvia received her at the train station with a bouquet of gloriosa, her favorites second to gardenias. She wouldn't stop praising her, and kept going on how proud she was of her. They had gotten something to eat at Lucy's favorite restaurant, all in account of Madam, who wanted to spoil her talented student, claiming she probably wouldn't get an opportunity like that in a while.

The other days passed without much events. She would wake up, stretch until her muscles screamed her to stop, take a bath to soothe the pain, and then she would either take walk to town, or she just laid down in bed reading some romantic novels.

A week and half later, her father arrived from his trip, and that was a memory Lucy was not going to forget in a while. She knew Jude Heartfilia wasn't happy with his daughter going to some dance school, and of course, he wasn't happy he was going to have a rather expensive tuition for at least three years.

When her father arrived, Lucy was rather nervous. After all, if Jude changed his mind about ballet school, there was no way she could pay the tuition, and she hadn't apply to any scholarships. If Jude said no, she was screwed.

So, knowing all of that, it was fair to say Lucy was once again, nervous. But nothing prepared her for what really happened.

"_Hello, Dad!"_

_Lucy forced herself to smile, but she knew she wasn't succeeding._

"_Lucy. Hello, honey. How did it go?"_

"_I got in, daddy. I made it"_

_Lucy saw different expressions cross his father's face: annoyance, denial, sadness, and then, finally, something she saw in Madam Sylvia some days ago, pride. He was proud of her._

"_I had a hunch you would. So I brought you something"_

_He started searching something in his suitcase. Lucy watched in amazement as his father pulled something of a black material. _

_A leotard._

_No, a _beautiful, extraordinary _leotard._

_High neck, with the back full of lace. The fabric was soft, and durable. It was perfect for an exhibition class, or for an audition. It was perfect for someone to notice her. It wasn't suitable for daily class though. It was too pretty for that._

_Lucy launched herself into the arms of her dad. "Thank you dad"_

_Jude smiled, and wrapped his arms around his daughter's tiny waist. "Make me proud, darling"_

Lucy smiled, as she packed the last of her stuff. She heard a knock on her door.

"Come in" she turned around to see Jude pass through the doors, a little box in his hands.

"It's time honey. Um, here," He handed the box to Lucy, "I thought you might want them" Lucy opened it. Inside there was some broken down, really worn out pointe shoes. She felt tears pooling in her eyes. Those were her mom's first pair of pointes.

"Thank you dad. I'll take care of them,"

Jude smiled, "I hope they give you some strength. Layla never wanted to throw them. She said they were her magical pair, her good luck charm"

"I'm sure they are, dad" She hugged her dad, hiding her face when she was unable to retain her tears from falling.

"I'm going to miss you baby girl"

"I know. Me too"

Yes, because even though Jude Heartfilia was a workaholic, and wasn't much around after Layla's death, when he was around, he was just like any other dad. Loving, caring, got jealous over silly things, grounded her. Would spend hours and hours talking about how she was growing up, and someday was going to leave him behind, and never visit.

"Miss Heartfilia, it's time"

"Y-Yeah. I'm coming. Thanks Capri" She gave a watery smiled to her chauffer, and a little nod. "Okay dad, I've got to go. I'll come see you around Christmas. Or you go, I don't know, we'll see. Love you" she hugged him one last time, and ran with her suitcase.

And for the first time since Layla's dead, Jude Heartfilia cried, while watching her only daughter ran through the doors of the Heartfilia manor, ready to accomplish her dreams. Ready to leave the nest.

The trip back to Magnolia was shorter than Lucy remembered. She didn't even realized when the train stopped, announcing the arrival to the town which would change her entire fate.

"Lucy!" The blonde girl turned around as she heard her name being called by a strong, female voice.

"Erza! It's been a while" Both girls had become close in the few days she stayed in Magnolia back in June when they had announce the audition results. Erza had showed her around a little since Natsu had to travel outside the country with his parents.

She was as gorgeous as she remembered, although, Lucy noticed, she had gained some weight during the almost two months she hadn't seen her.

"Oh, stop looking at me with those judgy eyes, Lucy. Even professionals put on some pounds over summer break. Except you, apparently. Have you lost weight?"

Lucy smiled at her friend. Yes she had lost some, but it wasn't on purpose. She was too excited for a few weeks to eat much, and she had been exercising quite a bit, since she had nothing else to do.

"Yeah, a few pounds. Not much though" Erza looked at her, a frown decorating her face. "Look who's being judgy now!"

"Lucy, I know life as a ballet dancer is hard, but don't get carried away with it. You can't starve yourself, nor can you over exercise"

"Erza, thank you for worrying, but I'm fine. I didn't starve myself, and I exercise quite a bit because I was bored"

"Okay, I'll drop the matter. But, if you lose some more, I'll tell the nutritionist. Now let's go! Time to meet your new home for the next three years!"

Lucy squealed in excitement as they started walking towards Fairy Tail Academy's co-ed dorms. She knew she was supposed to share room with someone, and was really excited to meet her. At last, she was going to be surrounded by people who understood her passion for dance.

Back at her school, her friends didn't get what was so important about dancing. They didn't get the discipline a dancer needs to get through a professional career, because they just _didn't see it as a career_. The girls would always complain about her schedules, and on why she couldn't hang out with them a little more, or why she couldn't go out on a Friday night.

"So, Erza. How's Jellal doing, huh?" she giggled at her friend's fierce blush, her face almost as red as her hair "Aw, how cute! You've been dating for over nine months, yet you still blush this hard!"

"Shut up!" Erza laughed, and smiled, thinking about her dreamy boyfriend. "He's at his hometown. Spending time with his brothers and all. He misses them a lot during the term."

Lucy smiled too, remembering he told her he had two brothers who looked exactly like him; they were triplets. She had always wanted a brother, someone who would look after her; after all, her father spent most of the time away, and all she had was her maids, and Madam.

"When will he be back?"

"Tomorrow. I'm glad he is, you know? I miss him terribly. Besides, classes start next week" Erza said, a smirk on her face, eyes shining with excitement.

"Do you know if we can we use the studios? For practice?" Lucy asked, crossing her fingers. She needed practice time to be in perfect shape for classes.

"Yeah, you need to ask permission from a teacher, but Lucy, remember: do not over exercise and for god's sake, eat!"

"Hey! I _am_ eating! I'm a healthy sixteen years old who loves food," she pouted at her friend. "Erza? Do you know when Natsu will be back?" she asked in a low voice, not looking into the redhead's eyes.

"Natsu? If I'm not wrong he arrived last week. Haven't seen him though, he's being busy," Erza said. She observed her blonde friend, and smirked knowingly. "Is someone smitten to a certain pink haired boy we both know?"

"W-what?! N-no! It's just…" Lucy tried to search for an excuse in her head, but right now couldn't think of anything. Suddenly bingo! "He said he would help me with some things. I'd never done pas de deux. There weren't any boys in the studio back in my hometown" _"Besides, it's not like he would like me. He already has a pretty girlfriend" she added in her mind._

To Lucy's surprised, Erza laughed. "So it was like that. Lucky you, Natsu is a great partner. We danced together at last year's gala. Jellal was sick, and Natsu volunteered. How are you in contemporary dance?"

Lucy sighed, her spirits dampening a bit. "I'm awful. My teacher back home said it's because I can't let go, that I'm too controlled,"

"Oh, well, I'll help you! It's my best class. Actually, you know? I'm hoping to get a job at Phoenix's Ballet"

Lucy's eyes widened. Phoenix was to Contemporary Ballet, what Ishgal was to Classical. The problem was that the renowned company was in Joya, a country to the east of Fiore. "You want to leave?"

"You're leaving?"

"Lucy!" Erza laughed at her friend's distressed face. "I don't know, I still have two years to decide. I love classical, but I love more contemporary. Maybe I'll try for Ishgal, after all is everyone's dream. But to be honest, I rather be in a full contemporary and neoclassical company"

Lucy nodded, understanding where her friend came from. Ishgal was a full rounded company, but its main focus was classic ballet. Twice a year they had a contemporary pieces, and one was the World's Choreographer's Festival.

After a few more minutes of talking, and walking, they reached "Fairy Hills" co-ed dorms for Ballet and Contemporary students of Fairy Tail. It was a beautiful building, and it was two blocks away from Fairy Tail.

They entered the place, and met with a few of the new young students who were looking in awe the lobby. A lady dressed in a green formal suit smiled at them, and walked towards them.

"Hello Erza. It's nice to see you. Miss, I need your name, your year and your acceptance letter"

Lucy nodded, "My name's Lucy Heartfilia, and I'm a first year" she reached for a white envelope which had the paper that said she had been accepted into Fairy Tail Academy "And here's my letter"

The lady took the envelope in her hands, opened it, and read it. After a minute she smiled at the blonde and stretched her hand. "Miss Heartfilia, it's nice to meet you. I'm Evergreen, the matron of the dorms. I'm in charge of the care of students. This includes supervising the compliance of dorm rules, such as curfew and the policy of no boys allowed in the girls' floors at night, or vice versa. Also, I'm in charge of the health, mentally and physically of the ladies of the Upper School. This way Miss Heartfilia, I'll show you where you'll be hopefully staying the next three years," Lucy followed Evergreen, listening closely to everything she was saying. After all, she had worked so hard to get there; there was no way she was going to screw up, and get expelled.

Erza excused herself, and told Lucy she was going to wait for her at the dining hall. Yes, dining hall, no cafeteria.

"Students are expected to be on their feet by maximum seven. Breakfast starts at seven thirty, after eight no student is allowed to enter the dining hall. Classes start at half past eight, I assume you already have your schedule," Lucy nodded. "Good. Usually students have class until five. Lunch is for everyone at quarter to twelve. Luckily the academy is quite close, so most come here to eat. If not, they probably eat at a café which has special menus for Fairy Tail students. You are free to use the installations here as you like. We have quite a big gym in the sublevel. Outside, we have a close semi Olympic pool. The dorm as you can see is divided in wings. East wing is for the Upper Class, West is for Junior Class. You are going to be sharing room with two more classmates. Third years have rooms to themselves, but they usually like share with a friend. Here we are Miss Heartfilia. This is your room, you are going to be sharing with misses Levy McGarden and Juvia Lockser. My office is at the end of this hallway, if anything happens, or you need to talk, just knock. Any questions?"

Lucy shook her head. "No ma'am. Everything is crystal clear. Thank you" she gave the sweetest smile she could to the young matron.

"Then I'll let you settle. Remember, anything you need, my office is open," with that, Evergreen took off, leaving Lucy on her own. She opened the door, and was pleasantly surprised at the room.

She had imagine something tiny, with bunk beds. Instead, it was a big bedroom with three beds; two close to each other, and one in a corner, perpendicular to the others. A circular, fluffy white in the middle of the room. In front of the cornered bed there was the door to the bathroom.

Each bed had at their feet a trunk where they were supposed to save their dance clothes. One of the walls of the room was a closet, divided in three so they would save their everyday clothes, and shoes.

Lucy smiled as she sat on the cornered bed. It was strange. She hadn't been there for more than twenty minutes, but she felt at home. She didn't even miss her house; she was just too happy of being there. It was everything she had dreamt and more. And she couldn't wait to meet her roommates, start class, and...

A knock startled of her day dream.

"Hello? Luce?"

Lucy's heart started beating fast, a blush spreading to her cheeks.

He was here.

"N-Natsu?"

* * *

**Hey hey! I know it probably feels a little rushed, but I wanted to get through it as quick as possible. Once again, thank you for reading my story, it means a lot; please, leave a comment so I can know if you like it, if you hate it, or if you want to throw yourself off a bridge because how bad it was.**

** I also aplogize for any grammar mistake there was.**

**Sending you lots of love from this part of the country.**

**Fran.**


	5. Chapter 5

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail. I just play with its characters and twist them to my own amusment.**_

* * *

"N-Natsu?" Lucy stood up, and walked towards the door.

"Yeah, open up!" She shakily started turning the knob, aware of how sweaty her hand felt.

God, she was being an idiot! Why was she so nervous? Even if he was gorgeous, and the son of the best dancers to ever existed, there was no reason to act the way she was. She was being irrational.

She took a deep breath, and opened the door.

He was there, standing against the wall, hands in his pockets. His pink hair was tied up in that little ponytail she had seen when she first met him; some bangs fell over his eyes. He was wearing a white tank top and worn-out jeans. He grinned at her. "Hey there!"

"H-hi Natsu, how did you know I was here? Come in," she let Natsu enter and they sat Indian style in the fluffy carpet.

"I was bringing my stuff to the room when I crashed into Erza, she told me. I didn't knew which room was yours, though. I've been knocking every first floor door, for the past ten minutes" he smiled sheepishly, a pink color covering his tanned cheeks. Lucy laughed; he really was adorable. "How are you?" he asked.

"Awesome," she laughed. "This place is dreamy, even if tried, I couldn't love it more"

"Yeah, I guess it is pretty cool. You should see the entertainment room. Although hardly anyone in the Upper School uses it. Not much free time when you're here,"

"Noticed. When I saw my schedule I almost died. Classes till five thirty?! I'm gonna die after a week,"

Natsu grimaced. "Don't tell me about it! I want to be a junior again. Classes only were in the morning, then academics. After three you had time to do as please, now I think I won't have time to breathe"

"What section are you?" Lucy asked, praying he was "B". There were thirty students in first year, more than in any other, so they were divided in two sections"

"I'm in B, you?"

"Same!" Natsu made a little "woo hoo" sound. "So we're going to be together in most classes?"

"Yup! Partnering, contemporary and modern. What music class did you take?"

"Piano,"

"Damn! I took violin"

"You play violin?!"

"Um, yes. My parents kinda forced me,"

"That's so cool! I've always wanted to learn, but I suck at string instruments, so I rather stick with piano,"

"It's actually not that hard; maybe I'll teach you sometime,"

Lucy scoffed. "Yeah? When? You said it yourself, no time to breathe in here"

"Touché. Classes finish at six, after that most start either studying, or just keep practicing. The school encourages extra practice time, be it weight training or just variation practice. Oh! And wait till mid-year gala, or the end of the year production; if it's crazy for Junior School, I don't even want to think about Uppers"

Lucy paled, and widened her eyes. Yes, she wanted to dance more than anything in this world, but if that was the extent of the academy's training, shit. She was going to die. Suddenly, she felt the itch to lock herself up in the room, and cry while in fetal position.

"Oh fuck. Sorry Luce! Didn't mean to scare you. You okay?" Natsu asked, concern showing in his dark green eyes.

"Yes, yes. Don't sweat it Natsu, it's good to know what to expect of Fairy Tail. Better know now than on Monday. This way at least I can prepare myself, psychological speaking of course"

_"__And maybe physically. After all there _is _a gym downstairs; Erza wouldn't have to know," _

"Hey Luce? I'm starving. Wanna go grab something to eat?"

Damn. She really wanted to say yes. Really, really wanted; but something stopped her from doing so. "I'm not really hungry Natsu. And I wanna unpack my stuff, you know, get settled and all that"

"Alright, your loss Luce!" he shrugged, and stood up. "Fuck, I'm all cramped. I remember now why I never sit Indian style," he laughed, Lucy along with him, as she stood up.

"And you call yourself a ballet dancer!"

"Shut it Lucerina" he groaned. "Shit, that was lame, wasn't it?" Lucy nodded, pressing her lips together, trying to hold back her laugh.

"It was,"

They laughed once again. "See you tomorrow Luce?"

"Yup! Are you already staying in the dorms?"

"Yes, most students who left for break are already coming back. My parents wanted me to stay with them till next week, but I like coming here and enjoy the freedom of the last week before class starts"

"Why you don't live with your parents? After all you live in Magnolia right?"

"Yeah, my house it's in the outskirts of town, but two reasons. One, the academy discourages living with family during school year. After all, boarding it's included in the tuition, and they don't think families have a hard hand when it comes to our training. Two, my parents are nuts. I love 'em, but they are a fucking crazy bunch. And they travel a lot, so they decided to leave me here,"

"Okay, so I'll see you at breakfast maybe?"

"You bet! See ya Luce!"

Lucy waved goodbye and closed the door. She looked around her. The room was too big for her to be alone in it.

It was getting dark already, past seven in the afternoon probably, and she was exhausted. She hadn't eaten anything since she left house, but strangely, couldn't feel hungry at all. Classes haven't even started yet, and the place was already messing with her mind.

She started unpacking; carefully separating clothes into dance and everyday category. She had two bags, one with clothes, and the other one with shoes, tights, and legwarmers. When she finish categorizing clothes, she realized, it was better to leave dance clothes in the closet, and everyday ones in the trunk.

At least twenty black leotards were folded in her bed. There were two white ones, and five red ones too. Leg warmers in every range of color and size; she also had five pairs of jazz pants; fifteen wrap skirts, and ten warm-up shorts. In her arsenal of dance clothes, she also had seven oversized sweaters, and an innumerable range of black, pink and white tights.

"Wow, that's a pretty lot of clothes you've got there!"

Lucy snapped her head towards the door. She was so distracted she hadn't heard the door open. Standing there, was the fairy like blue haired girl she saw back in June in the burger joint. She was quite short, no more than five foot. Five inches shorter than her.

"You must be either Lucy or Juvia. I'm Levy McGarden, nice to meet you," she smiled at her, and stretched her hand.

"I'm Lucy, it's nice to meet you too, Levy!" she took the hand the tiny girl offered.

"Authorities are crazy if they think we can fit in our clothes in the trunks. I'm sure ninety percent of the female students here just put dance clothes in the wardrobe. After all, we almost never go to town,"

"True to that. I didn't thought I had so many clothes though," Lucy answered, while laughing and scratching the back of her head.

"Happens. I'll help you if you help me after. Otherwise, I'm going to finish next week! Pretty please," Levy put her hands together, puppy eyes pleading Lucy to help her.

"Sure! Let's start then,"

At least fifty leotards, seventy tights, and enough warm up clothes to last a century later, the girls finally finished unpacking and tidying everything up. They drop exhausted to their beds, and laughed at their antics.

Lucy decided she really liked Levy. She was funny, and loved to read as much as her, and she just knew they were going to be great friends.

"I'm starving! What time is it already?"

"Let me see" Lucy grabbed her phone from the nightstand. "Forget about eating Levy! It's five past ten,"

"God, tomorrow I'm going to be up at seven just so I can eat!" She stretched in her bed, and sat up. "Hey, Lucy? Do you know anything about Juvia Lockser?"

"Nothing at all, Levy. Why?"

"Just asking. I'm worried I guess,"

"Worried?"

"You're new here, so you wouldn't know but once you're in Upper School, people start dropping out. This year we are thirty, but if lucky, only twenty will be graduating, and that's a high number, you know? Last year, third years were barely twelve. Of course, it's because Fairy Tail's standards, but it's scary,"

Lucy bit her lip. As if Natsu's stories weren't freaking her out already, now she had to worry about actually graduating.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't want to freak you out,"

"No, it's okay, Levy. Let's promise something okay? We are going to do our best, and we're graduating together!" she stuck her pinky finger together, smiling at her roommate.

"Okay, it's a promise!" they wrapped their fingers together, and laughed at their childishness. "Are you up for a stretch session?"

"Always!"

With some upbeat music in the background, courtesy of Levy's stereo, they focus on their own stretch routine.

"Nice extension Lucy. You've got a strong hip flexor, but you're sinking a little bit. Try pulling in your ribs a little bit, yeah, just like that, now turn out, and, how pretty! It looks like Mirajane's!"

"Wow that felt so good! Thanks, Levy," Lucy dropped her leg softly, and relaxed herself into a side split.

"I've been taking Anatomy courses since I was thirteen. I've gotten real good at observing the body and its strengths and weaknesses," Levy explained, imitating Lucy.

"Let me guess, if you couldn't dance, you'd want to be a kinesiologist,"

"The thought has crossed my mind, yes, but honestly, I can't imagine myself not dancing. And when I retire, I actually want to work here, as a teacher,"

"God, I can't even think about retiring since my career haven't really started," Lucy said laughing.

Levy laughed as well. "I guess you're right. It is too early to think about retiring. First, we have to graduate from this place,"

They talked a bit more about their lives; asked banal things, and laughed until they finished their little routine. For Lucy–who wasn't accustomed to have a close friends who understood so much about ballet–was a nice change. For the first time in her life, she had a persons who actually related to some of her stories, and who didn't looked at her weird for constantly spread her legs, and twist them like a pretzel.

"Good night, Lu. Rest well,"

"You too Lev. Wake me up so we can have breakfast together," she yawned, and turned off the light. Her head rested in the pillow, and within minutes she was asleep, a tiny smile on her face.

_Shiny lights were all over the place. Flashes from cameras dizzied her. So many people, and all were coming to see her, only her._

_The well-known music from the prelude of Swan Lake was being played by the orchestra, and Lucy knew when it was her cue to enter stage. Everything was going perfectly. She somehow had every step memorized, her body moved in harmony; she didn't feel the pain that usually came from prolonged use of pointe shoes. She felt _perfect._ She wasn't Lucy Heartfilia anymore, no, she was Odette: sweet, innocent, carefree. And then the music changed._

_It became dark, and the lights went off. It was the moment she was going to be cursed to be a swan until true love broke the spell._

_Out of nowhere, someone familiar appeared. _

_"__No! It wasn't supposed to be like this"_

_A mop of messy pink hair looked back at her, a smirk in his lips._

_Lucy ran, and ran around the stage, while Natsu chased her. Suddenly, she didn't felt her feet anymore. Neither her hands. Tears brimmed her eyes when she realized what had happened._

_She was a swan, a real life swan. And Natsu laughed and laughed at her. He turned around, ready to leave her, not even bothering to hear the desperation of the girl's screams._

Her eyes snapped open as she panted for air. Damn, that was one hell of a nightmare. It was still dark outside, probably four in the morning. She sat, wiping off the sweat from her forehead when she noticed it.

Her right forearm was bloody, and burned from friction. Large scratches were in there, and it was already turning purple.

"Shit," she whispered, while getting up to go to the bathroom to clean up the wounds.

The words of Levy and Natsu echoed in her head; the stress was already getting her. The fucked up part of her mind was already telling her she wasn't good enough to handle this. The voice in her mind was yelling at her for being so damn weak.

She winced when she put her arm under cool water, rising off the dry blood.

It wasn't like she _wanted _to hurt herself; it was just her anxiety taking control of her, slipping through words, settling into her dreams, and making her unconsciously harm herself.

"_Fuck my life," _she thought, gritting her teeth as she disinfected the wounds with a cotton soaked in alcohol.

She gathered all of her might to not let a cry or scream pass through her lips. She bit her cheek, she bit her lip, she gritted her teeth so hard they were starting to squeak, everything to contain the pain she was feeling cleaning the scratches and burn marks.

She frowned at her arm; those marks weren't going to be easy to cover, and she couldn't afford people asking about them because in she knew if the academy's counselor found out she wasn't mentally stable, she was going to get thrown out, and she wasn't going to take any chances.

_"__I guess long sleeved leotards will do" _she thought.

She walked out of the bathroom, and cuddled in her bed, ready to walk into Morpheus arms once again.

_"__I'm definitely buying some mittens tomorrow"_

"Lucy! Come on, it's eight and I'm starving!"

Lucy groaned, and put the covers of the bed over her head. "Fuck off!"

Levy glared at the blonde. "Fine, don't say I didn't warn ya!" Without any more words, Lucy heard the petite girl walking off. She sighed in content; after waking up at four in the morning, she really wasn't ready to wake up.

Of course that was until she felt the cold air of morning followed by something wet.

A screeched was heard all over the hallway.

"Damn you Levy! It fucking eight! Why in hell would you wake me up at this hour?!" She wasn't exactly a morning person.

Levy raised an eyebrow. "First, I didn't took you for someone who could curse so much, I'm impressed," she clapped lightly. "Second, _you_ told me to wake you up so we could have breakfast together, so don't complain Miss Heartfilia!"

Lucy groaned at the girl's replied; she was right, she had told her to wake her up in the morning.

"Fine! Let me get dressed," she got up grudgingly, a little scowl on her pretty face. Instead of everyday clothes like Levy, Lucy decided to wear her usual workout outfit; that way she could hit the gym and do some weight training after eating; her body was dying for a nice Pilates workout. Luckily, Magnolia was quite cold to be September, so long sleeves wouldn't be weird; so finally, after twenty minutes of Levy's complains, Lucy was ready. Her blonde hair was pulled in a tight ponytail, her face barely covered in some makeup, mostly to cover up the dark circles under her eyes.

"Hurry up! Some friends are already waiting for us at the dining hall,"

"I thought the dining hall was closed?"

"Mm? No, it isn't. It's open all year long, after all, they are some students that are under the direct care of Fairy Tail. They love to help kids who are talented but don't have a home. Every year they send scouts to orphanages to see if there are kids with potential,"

"Oh, that's a nice thing to do,"

"Yeah, I know. When they told me I was really moved; we can also volunteer in our third year to accompany the scouts, and just, you know, give our opinion as academy students and future professionals,"

"Huh, how cool,"

Lucy followed Levy down the two flight of stairs that separated their room from the lobby. Once in there, they walked down the principal hall; at the end a beautiful double door awaited.

"And here we've got our dining hall," Levy pushed the doors open and Lucy was immediately in love with the place.

It was spacious, many round wood tables were position around the place. At the west wall, a large rectangular table with food in it; there place was almost empty; not many students eating yet, only six tables were being used. In one she recognized Erza who has standing up and walking towards the table with the food, and…

_"__Holy fucking shit. Why?"_

"Oh hey Levy! Took you a while. And who is this?"

"Hi, hi! This is my roommate Lucy Heartfilia; Lucy, this is Lisanna Strauss, and yes, she's Mirajane's baby sister,"

"Hello Lucy," Lisanna roamed her eyes on her body, and Lucy looked away, feeling too self-conscious. "Hey, I know you! You are the girl who bumped into my boyfriend at Yajima's right?"

Lucy felt the sudden urge to punch the girl, and then run far, far away, but couldn't. She was frozen in place after hearing the confirmations of her suspects. The pretty white haired girl, the perfect girl who had physically everything she didn't, the girl who was _the_ Mirajane Strauss' sister, was Natsu's girlfriend.

* * *

**Aaand, that's it for chapter 5. I hope you enjoyed it, if you did make sure to leave a comment so I can know. Thanks to everyone who favorited, reviewed and followed 3 Also, starting from chapter 6 I'm gonna start writing in Lucy's POV, since I feel that way I can describe a little better her character. After all, she's got this little complex mind that it's quite hard to grasp in words.**

**Byebye! :D**


	6. Chapter 6

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail. I just play with its characters and twist them to my own amusement.**_

* * *

God was really cruel.

I like to say I'm a girl of strong beliefs. I have a cross around my neck, I try to pray often. I go to church twice a month, and I confess monthly.

Still, God was a cruel being, and also, he was extremely unfair.

Why? Why was it like this?

This girl was _perfect_ in every sense of the word. She was beautiful, slender and about five foot five, just like me, but there was this otherworldly grace to her. The way she was seated, with her delicate ankles crossed, her hands softly placed on her knees, the way she held her back straight.

She had the same genes her sister had, and that was saying something, considering Mirajane Strauss was an idol in the ballet world. Youngest girl ever to win the title of Prima Ballerina, and she was only twenty two, and if this girl, Lisanna, was half as good as her, then fuck me, because I wasn't going to be able to compose myself.

And besides all of that, God had also given her Natsu Dragneel as her boyfriend. The son of the most perfect couple in the ballet world. They'll probably be the next Fonteyn and Nureyev, the next Igneel and Grandine. They are after all, genetically programmed for that; and I might be there in the stage with them, but waving a rose back and forth at the corps, watching her have all I want.

"Lucy? Are you okay?" Levy's concerned voice snapped me out of my pity party.

Shit, I had spaced out for a while apparently.

"Y-yeah. Sorry, I'm still a little bit sleepy," I answered sheepishly, trying not to lose my mind.

"Mhm, sure," she gave me the "we'll-talk-later" look, and turned to Lisanna. "Anyway Lisanna! Boyfriend? Natsu asked you finally?!"

The damn bitch blushed. "N-no, it's not official yet, but he told me we needed to talk, and you know, we've been friends since forever, and I know I like him, and I'm quite sure he likes me, and everybody is expecting this,"

Wait. What?

They weren't dating?!

Bitch got me worried about nothing! What the hell?!

In my mind I was doing a little victory dance. And then, like usually it hit me hard, and painfully.

They weren't dating _yet. _But good lord, who wouldn't want to date little miss perfect? She was beautiful, and skinny, and had this porcelain pale skin that made her look like a fucking doll. And apparently, she was damn nice too!

"Lucy? Good morning! Sleep well?" a voice asked behind my back. God, Erza thank you for pulling me out of my gloomy thoughts.

"Erza! Hi, yeah, like a baby" I lied, but after all these years of doing it I had become good. I knew there was no way she could tell I was lying.

"Oh that's good! Hey Levy! You met Lucy yet?" she asked to the petite girl.

"She's my roommate! You two know each other?"

This time I answered. "Yup, met her at the café down the main street. She kinda helped me after the results were up, Jellal and Gray were there too,"

"Oh! How nice then, you know the guys too. And talking about Jellal, when does he arrive?" she asked the redhead, helping her with the tray with four cups of coffee I just noticed she had.

They started talking of their love lives as I grabbed one cup for myself, loving the way it burned my throat. But my stomach needed some food after almost two days of not eating.

"I'm going to get something to eat, anyone want something?"

"Grab me a yogurt with fruit and granola please. Oh, and a boiled egg too," I nodded at Levy's request. The sound of the food made my empty stomach grumbled.

"Be right back," I walked towards the buffet table; my mouth watered at the sight.

There were fruit salads, multi grain bread with some peanut butter,–which was probably for the guys–; the eggs were arranged nicely in cups, and next to them was a basket with protein bars.

At the end of the table were bowls of yogurt, and you could top it off with whatever you wanted.

I grabbed two bowls of yogurt and started to add the toppings; one with granola and a fruit salad for Levy, and the other with muesli and berries for me. I placed them in a tray, and grabbed the egg for Levy, and the protein bar for me.

"Mm, for someone so skinny you surely eat a lot,"

I jumped and if it wasn't because I had just placed the tray down, I would've said goodbye to my breakfast. I turned around to see Natsu way too close to me.

"What the fuck Natsu! You almost gave me a heart attack," I yelled at him.

"I was just stating a fact; don't get mad, jeez," he pouted as he grabbed the peanut butter sandwich, a coffee and a yogurt.

"It's not everything for me asshole, my roommate asked me to bring this to her" I defended myself while walking away. He easily caught up with me, his tray now also sporting two protein bars. I frowned. "Why can guys eat so much and do not get fat?!"

"Because we need to be strong to lift you all mighty and terrifying ballerinas"

I scowled at him, and walked towards my table. Once there, I saw Gray and another guy who I didn't know sited. And of course, it shouldn't have surprised me to see Natsu pulling out a chair.

"Here you go Levy," I told her while sitting next to her.

"Thank you so much! I knew you were gonna be the best roomie when I laid my eyes on you," and then she grabbed her spoon and started eating with gusto.

"Hey Gray! It's been a while," I smiled to the dark haired guy.

"Hi Lucy, how are ya? I guess congratulations are in order," I smiled and replied a quick thank you. "This is Leonard Celestial,"

The ginger haired boy, grabbed her hand across the table and laid a kiss. "Loke for my close friends, and beautiful girls like yourself. Leonard is too silly"

"Yup, it is," I answered back, laughing. "But apparently so is your personality, so I guess it fits,"

Loke looked at me, mouth hanging, before crossing his arms, pouting and complaining to Gray about how mean I was. The others just laughed.

"I knew you were going to fit just right in here Luce!" said Natsu, dropping an arm around my shoulder.

I shifted uncomfortable under the stare and frown of Lisanna, who was trying to get Natsu's attention.

Fuck, I really didn't need the sister of the ballet's sweetheart as an enemy.

"So Lucy right? You look quite muscular, didn't you ever heard ballerinas aren't supposed to do weight training?" Lisanna asked, eyebrow raised.

Oh great, bitch was trying to psyche me out. I guess it's true what movies said about always being at least one in a school, be it a public, private, or ballet one. And here I thought she was nice.*Mental scoff* yeah, right.

"How rude, Miss Strauss, weren't you taught to not mention a women's physique in front of others? And I believe you are quite mistaken about weight training," I retorted; I wasn't going to let that girl see the hurt her words had caused in my eyes. "You need well trained muscles to keep you on your pointes. Let me guess, you can only balance in passé for," I watched her calves, and ankles for a moment. "At most thirty seconds. There's no way you could dance the Rose Adagio with your ankle strength, and please correct me if I'm wrong, you also don't have a strong jumping technique, do you?"

"W-w-what? H-how did you…?" she stuttered.

I smirked. Lucy 1, Lisanna 0.

"You should get your facts right before trying to insult someone you don't even know; and really? Already trying to make me crumble?" I told her, before standing, grabbing my empty tray. "Oh don't put that surprised face, I know how ballerinas think. After all I am here, aren't I?"

And without more words, I walked away; no one in the table had spoken nor had tried to intervene, and for that I was glad. I didn't need people defending me, and neither wanted for them to fight with a friend. After all, all of them had been here since Junior School, and who was I to break those bonds?

Even if I had quite a fucked up mind, and had anxiety, and somehow sometimes I managed to self-harm during my sleep, I still could stand up for myself. I wasn't going to let some stuck-up Prima Ballerina wannabe to insult me like that, even if she _was_ right.

Once I was back in my room, I took the full body mirror Levy had next to her bed and locked myself in the bathroom. I looked back at the reflection. I knew this was bad for my mental health, but whatever; I needed to assure myself that I was okay, that my _body _was okay.

Madam Sylvia always had said I had the perfect proportions for classical ballet. And I saw that. The round head, long neck and limbs, short torso. But I also had wide hips, and a little more bust than I should. Of course I wasn't a cup C, but I didn't fit into an A. I was in the middle of an A and B cup.

I fuck, I hated to admit it, but Lisanna was right, I was starting to get too muscular. She had this softness to her body, the one you see in most of the Romantic Ballets: Giselle, La Sylphide, Coppélia, and so on. On the other hand we had mine; my upper body was tight and pretty, if I dared to say so. My arms were thin, and had this nice look to them, biceps and triceps were visible, and no chicken wings. My stomach was flat, and you could see the abs, no fats in there.

But my lower body was starting to be a problem. I used to think wide hips were a pro to my dancing career, since they made it really easy to turn out, but as of lately, they were starting to be a problem. My quads were starting to bulk, and my thighs were touching. I cupped my butt with my hands and yes: the cheeks were bigger than my hands.

Shit, how much was I weighting? And considering I had lost a few pounds during break, how big did I look at my audition then?

_No, you didn't look big; stop this Lucy! You're just falling right into Lisanna's manipulation. _

I gave myself one last glance, and decided to drop it. If my body really wasn't ideal, then my teachers would tell me about it on Monday.

I got out of the bathroom and let my body drop onto my bed. Fuck the Pilates session, I wanted to just stay in my bed, and not see anyone for the rest of the day.

*Knock, knock*

I groaned into my pillow, of course I wasn't going to be alone for the rest of the day. Like I said, God is really fucking mean to me.

"Luce?" That voice made me snapped out, and I sat in my bed, trying to look a little more presentable.

"Natsu? Come in" I said. He opened the door, and strutted into the room looking flawless like always.

_God I sound like a love sick fool._

I knew nothing was going to happened, because one, he had Lisanna even if they weren't "official", and two, I wanted to focus on ballet– I didn't have time for silly love stories– Yet still, I really liked Natsu; I didn't knew him much, but at least on a physical level, I was quite attracted to him.

"Hey what's up?" I asked him. He frowned, and sat in the end of my bed as I folded my legs in a butterfly position.

"You okay?" he asked. Now it was my turn to frown.

Was he worried about me?

"I-I'm fine, really. I'm stronger than I look," _Yeah, sure._

"I'm sorry about Lisanna. She's not usually like that; I'm sure the stress is just getting her already,"

I nodded. "Honestly Natsu? I don't care. I'm sorry your girlfriend didn't like me and all that jazz, but I don't give a shit about what she said, or _why_ she said it,"

"I understand that but," he paused as he started blushing. "Wait, g-girlfriend? What the hell are you talking about?!"

I smirked inside my twisted little mind, but kept my cool in the exterior. "Isn't she? I mean, she told me and I quote: You're the girl who bumped into my boyfriend at Yajima's"

"W-what? Damn, no! Lisanna is like a little sister to me! I've known her because our parents are friends; ballet world is small you know?"

"Hey! Don't snap at me Mister, I'm just stating what she told me,"

"Shit, why would she do that? It's not like that, we are close, and have been pas de deux partners since forever, but that's it,"

"It's alright Natsu, you don't have to explain anything. And hey, even if she was such a bitch with me, I don't blame you if you like her. She's gorgeous, and I'm sure she's really nice," I said, trying to express indifference. It was needed for him to know I like him.

"I'm telling you it's not like that!" he yelled as I watched him with wide eyes.

"O-Okay. I'm sorry," Of course no one could be as perfect as I thought he was. He had a short temper apparently.

"Fuck, I'm sorry Luce, I shouldn't have yelled," he apologized.

Honestly, I thought he was going to bit my head off at one moment, and he really fucking scared me, yelling like that out of nowhere. I mean, come on, it wasn't like I insulted him or something. But he and his pink hair was growing on me so, I just brushed it off.

"It's fine, I pushed it too far. Whatever you do or like it's your business not mine,"

We stayed in silence for a while, each one focusing on our own thoughts. I really wanted to talk about something, anything, but couldn't really find words. What should I talk about? Weather? Ballet? That was my repertoire. I wasn't really good at social meetings; only after knowing the person for a while I could really open up.

Luckily, Natsu broke the ice.

"Hey, wanna get out of here? Just us, let's go hiking!"

"What? Are you for real? Natsu! Come on; I know you don't see Lisanna as more than a friend, but, I know for sure she does. And I don't want her to hate me even more; the last thing I need, is teenage jealousy drama,"

"Oh come on Lucerina! It'll be fun, and we are friends, aren't we? We are going to bond a while, that's it. That way we'll be best friends, and we'll braid each other hairs, and we'll go shopping and…" he said with a high pitched voice.

"Oh god stop it!" I laughed at his stupid impression of rich girls. "I'll go if you promise to never do that voice again,"

"Lucerina, you've got yourself a deal," he answered back, grabbing my hand and shaking it, as I giggled as the hormonal teenage girl I was.

"But wait, hiking, really?"

"Well, I haven't doing anything besides eating and traveling, so yup, hiking it is,"

"Oh I see your point, you _are _a little fat," I started poking his sides. "Yes, right here! You need to start dieting Mister Dragneel!"

Natsu's eyes suddenly gleamed with mischief. Oh fuck, this boy was up to no good.

"Oh yeah?" He jumped on me and started tickling my sides. "I've always been told tickling other person is good for losing weight!"

"F-f-fuck off Natsu! S-stop!" I managed to say between laughs. I hated I was this ticklish; it was going to be a problem for partnering, Madam Sylvia always said it was my biggest weakness– well, besides the whole anxiety, and self-esteem shit.

"Not until you say I'm fit and gorgeous, and have the body of a Greek god"

"W-What? N-no!" he tickled harder, making me to pant for air for laughing too much. I hated to dive in right into his trap, but oh well, my back and abs were starting to hurt already. "Fine Dragneel! You win, you win! You are fit and have the body of Zeus; happy?"

"Oh Lucerina" he brought a hand to his chest, and fake-wiped a tear off his face. "I'd have never imagined you thought so highly of me,"

I scoffed. "In your dreams tights boy, now get off me! You're heavy!" he just laughed, and jumped out of my bed. He stretched his arms and I couldn't help but appreciate the view of his body.

Lots of people thought boys who did ballet were all scrawny and feminine looking. Oh boy were they wrong. Ballet guys had the most amazing body ever; after all, they needed strength to do lift after lift during a performance; and that was lifting at least ninety pounds if the ballerina was tiny.

_I wonder if he can lift me… how much _I am _weighting again?_

"Liking the view?" he said wiggling his eyebrows. "I can't take off my shirt if you want,"

I blushed madly at his words. "GET OUT NOW!" I yelled at him.

"Alright, alright! I'm leaving" he put his hands in a surrender manner. "But my offer still stands! I'll see ya at the lobby at noon Lucerina!" and he bolt out of the room.

"At least drop the nickname," I whispered to nothing.

…

_NOW HOLD ON JUST A SECOND! Me and Natsu? Alone? Hiking?_

My mind was going into overdrive. I didn't know what to think, what to do, what to _wear. _It wasn't supposed to be like this! I was supposed to stay away from Natsu fucking Dragneel! He was going to be a distraction I didn't need in my life at the moment. My intuition was screaming at me, telling me he was going to be a major pain in the ass, he was going to be a problem to me and my career, he and that not-girlfriend of his.

But my tiny, cold, and kinda ill heart was thumping in excitement, and was flipping the bird to my overthinking brain.

* * *

**Heyhey! So there! Like I said before I'm starting to write this story in Lucy's point of view so you can see her personality. She's just a sixteen years old, with some normal confidence issues that when mixed with ballet and the pressure this form art, brings something interesting. I'm trying to keep this as close to reality as I can, mixing some elements from my own school, and attitudes I've seen in my classmates, friends, and myself.**

**Also, in my profile I'll start posting links related to the ballet elements mentioned in the story. The Rose Adagio for example, is a scene from The Sleeping Beauty which is incredible hard and requires exquisite technique and yes, strength. The lead girl must dance with four men who represents Aurora's suitors; it's seven minutes of lots of balance in one leg, and turns, and extensions.**

**Anyway, thanks to all who reviewed, your words make me very happy, and motivate me to keep writing. Also, thanks to those who favorited and followed! I'm glad you like this story so far :) **

**Lots of love! =***


	7. Chapter 7

**_Disclaimer: I don't own Fairy Tail. I just play with its characters, and twist them to my own amusement. _**

* * *

"Favorite color?"

"Pink, yours?"

"Hmm, so my hair it's your favorite color?"

"Damn it Natsu! New rule for the rest of the afternoon: No teasing,"

"You're no fun Lucerina," He pouted.

I sighed. We had been walking away from the town and into a little path in the woods for twenty minutes. At first, it was too damn awkward; neither of us knew what to say; of course, then Natsu decided we play 20 questions to break the ice. They were innocent questions, but somehow, that pink haired bastard always found a way to tease me with my answer; apparently, he enjoyed when I made a fool out of myself.

"Mine's red," he said. "Your turn,"

I frowned in concentration, until I felt a lightbulb appear over my head. "Out of every color in this world, why would you dye your hair _pink_?"

He spluttered the water he was drinking. I smirked.

Victory.

"I DIDN'T DYE IT!" he yelled as I laughed at his flustered face. Oh, how sweet revenge was. "It's my natural hair color; apparently that's what happen when you mix red and blue genetics,"

"Red and blue equals purple!" I replied back. "Your argument is invalid. Your hair is dyed. Now come on! Why pink?"

"I can prove it to you if you want," he smirked, and started playing with the hem of his loose black cargo pants.

Now it was my turn to blush bright red once again. Damn, my victory was short lived.

"No thanks," I answered, glaring at him.

"Fine, suit yourself, but admit you were wrong, and say my hair is naturally pink,"

"No," I stuck my tongue out.

Yup, I was incredibly mature.

However, next thing I knew was I was on my back, being tickled by a pink haired monster.

"Admit it!"

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" I managed to yell while being tickled, but of course, the gorgeous dancer didn't stopped.

"Say it!"

"N-no! I-I'm not l-l-losing a-again!"

He founded a sensitive spot in my ribs, and I started laughing harder. Shit, why did he liked to tickle people to make them admit defeat!? And then, again, a lightbulb in my head turned on.

"Ow, ow," I cried. "Natsu! It hurts"

I saw his eyes widen, and the panicky strike in them. "Oh fuck, I'm sorry! Is it broken? Do I call an ambulance? Oh merde, d-did I ruined your career?! Forgive me Lucy, I-I never…" I started laughing at his rambling, standing up, and walking away. I looked over my shoulder to meet his confused gaze.

"I was acting, idiot," I smiled innocently.

He blinked once. Twice. A smile started to spread in his tan features.

_"__Well Lucy, this is when you run"_

And so I did. I ran like I never ran in my entire life. Of course, Natsu caught up to me in three minutes, tackled me to the ground, and made me beg for forgiveness; and me, being the stubborn idiot I was raised to be, didn't conceive; after "fighting"– tickling, some crazy kicks, and maybe a punch or two to his face– we were left tired, panting for air and mudded.

We laid in the cold ground, trying to catch our breath. I turned my head to look at him. We stared into each other eyes, and burst out laughing.

"Fuck you Natsu! This is my favorite sweatshirt. I'm going to need another one," I pouted looking at my messy outfit. My sneakers–once bright pink– were now obscure for so much mud on them. And I could feel the gross substance in my face.

"Aw, I think it looks good on you Luce!"

I glared at him, but couldn't resist the laughter that bubbled in my throat. He was so dirty, but looked adorable with his hood on. It had ears on.

"W-What happened?"

"Are those rabbit ears Natsu?" I asked once I stopped laughing.

He blushed, and tried to say something, but apparently couldn't.

"It's the cutest thing I've ever seen, where did you get it?" he mumbled something. "Huh?"

"My sister sewed them on," he looked away, his cheeks still pink.

…

…

"You have a sister?!" I asked/yelled, the rabbit ears in his hood forgotten–for the moment.

"Y-Yeah," he looked at me with widened eyes, probably a little scared of my outburst. "Wendy, she's twelve,"

"Does she dance?"

He nodded. "She's in her fourth year of Junior School; already won some prizes in her age division. Quite a talented girl; very intelligent. Of course, I'm her inspiration, and role model, after all, I'm awesome,"

I scoffed. "I really hope she's not like you and your big head. When can I meet her?"

"In two week probably. Juniors have an extra rest week. Lucky them,"

I stared at the trees above us, barely seeing some piece of sky, which was clouded; it was probably going to rain. I looked at Natsu–who still had the hood with the rabbit ears on– lie down beside me.

"Hey Natsu, how old are you?"

"I'll be seventeen in two month, why?"

I frowned. Now that wasn't right. Weren't only six years at Junior High? Then, if Natsu had entered Fairy Tail at nine, almost ten, then why wasn't he a Second Year?

"I had to repeat fourth year. That's why I'm not in Second of Upper" he answered to my unasked question. I looked at him with a frown. How did he…? "You're easy to read Lucerina. It's okay. Don't feel bad," I nodded, smiling timidly. "I had really weak ankles, and body in general. On fourth I failed partnering, and technique, the two subjects more important for classical ballet. I was supposed to get expelled, but Master Makarov is close to my parents, so he gave me another chance. I had to do extra training time. And pointes," he grimaced.

I stared at him in surprise, mouth hanging open. "P-pointes?"

He groaned. "Luce, don't make me repeat myself. It was humiliating, the guys still laugh at me because of that,"

"Oh you poor thing!" I cooed, patting his head. He looked at me annoyed. "So wait, you're the oldest in the first year group?" He shook his head, a smirk in his face.

"Fortunately, Gray is older than me by four months, so I'm not the grandpa of First Year," he stated proudly.

"But, Gray started relatively late, so at least he has kind of a valid excuse Natsu," I reasoned, and watched him pout like the little boy he was in his heart.

"I have a valid excuse too! I was weak, not my fault! My dad told he went through the same process, and I graduated Junior School within the top five, so there!" he stuck out his tongue.

I laughed at how childish he was. I'd have never thought the son of two Ballet stars was like this; I'd have never thought _Natsu_, the gorgeous, seemingly out of reach boy I saw back in June was this boy: hyperactive, childish, too funny for his own good, the prototype of a little brother sometimes.

"You are such a boy Natsu, so cute. Maybe I can adopt you!"

"Hey! Shut it kiddo, your parents never told you to respect your elders?"

"Oh, I am sorry grandpa! Please forgive me for my disrespect" I said, giggling like a mad girl. To put a bit more emphasis in my apology, I stood up, and bowed.

"These damn kids nowadays," he grunted, like an old man. "Not showing respect, not caring about anything but..." he kept grunting unintelligible words, while I just kept laughing.

A few drops fell into my face, and into my mouth for laughing so much.

"Oh shit, seems like our hiking ends here. It's starting to rain, how surprising" he said sarcastically.

"Come on Pinky! Don't sulk, let's go get some coffee, or chocolate, anything warm really,"

"But we didn't even last an hour!"

I frowned. I had seen my phone just a few minutes ago, and it was well past four already. "What are you talking about Natsu? We've been out here for four hours, and I don't want to get caught in the rain so move!"

"Wow, you're right," he said checking his watch. "Well, it's like the saying right? Time flies when you're having fun!"

"How far away is the closest café here?"

"Oh! There's a little one close here. You'll love it! It's a little cottage, and it's usually empty weekdays,"

"What are you waiting for? Show the way!"

Natsu was right; in exactly seven minutes we were standing outside a nice rustic cottage. On the front a sign with elegant font read "The Lastarria Café". It looked warm, and pretty. Not nearly as big as the only other café I knew in Magnolia. We walked in just as the rain started pouring harder. A wave of heat hit me right away once inside. A black wood stove stood in the middle of five sofas, and it probably was the source of heat in the place. It was empty, except for the girl–Anna read the name tag– behind the counter who was smiling at us.

"Hi, welcome to Lastarria. What can I get you?"

"I'll have a Red Latte, with non-fat milk, no cream please, and a turkey Panini," I said smiling after a quick look to the board of recommendations.

"Good choice. Separate bills?" Anna asked.

I answered a quick yes while Natsu shook his head, and muttered "No, I got it", trying to be the gentleman.

"What? No! I can pay my own food," I protested, pulling a bill out of my wallet.

"Hey! Let me do the nice, gentlemanly thing and pay for it,"

Before he could do anything, I handed the bill to the girl, while she just looked highly amused by our argument. I stuck my tongue at Natsu. "I win!"

He shook his head, and proceeded to order his food. "I'll have the special Mint coffee, and the spicy cheese grilled sandwich. And the twelve macaron box, mix up. Thanks,"

"Alright, take a seat, I'll get your food there,"

"Thank you!" we replied, and took seat in one of the comfy sofas. I hadn't noticed the small wood center table each had in front, probably because the stove blocked the way.

"Well, it looks nice," I said after a while.

"It is, and the food it's pretty amazing, although, seriously? A non-fat milk latte?" he asked, eyes looking straight at me in an are-you-serious way.

"Hey! I can't afford to eat off balance. Ballerina remember?" he rolled his eyes, and scoffed.

"Yeah, because hundred pounds is too heavy. And besides, you asked for the weirdest Latte! Who likes to mix red tea, coffee and milk?"

"Stop judging my choice in food! And FYI, it's in the recommendation board. I want to see what it taste likes. And you ordered for a spicy cheese sandwich! What's with that, huh?" I countered, an eyebrow raised.

"It's the perfect mix of cheese, jalapeño, and ham. You can't discard it until you taste it,"

"The same goes to my latte!"

We bickered back and forth about our food choice until the girl, Anna, came with a tray with our food in it. She set two paper cups in the table, one pink and the other blue, and a plate with our sandwiches on it. "If you need something call me," she said with a smile, before going back to the counter.

I brought the cup to my lips, and a sweet, light flavor hit my tongue, and made me sigh in content.

That was easily the best Latte I had ever had.

"I just fell in love with this," I said, my eyes closed, enjoying every second of the rare, rich taste.

"Right back at ya; my memories didn't do justice to this place," Natsu said, devouring his sandwich, and taking big gulps of his coffee. The subtle scent of mint from Natsu's coffee hit me, and mixed with the smell of firewood. It's like a perfect winter day, only missing the soft music.

"You look quite tired Lucerina," Natsu noticed.

"Yeah, I'm a little bit tired I guess, after all someone threw me to the mud, and tried to tickle me to death," I said, glaring at him playfully.

He smiled, and nudges softly my shoulder. "You know you had a great time!"

I smiled back, and rested my head on his shoulder, suddenly feeling quite sleepy. "Yeah, I did. Thanks," I felt him nuzzle my hair, and I knew my cheeks were already getting pink.

"You're welcome Luce, I had a great time too,"

We stayed like this for a while, me sipping my delicious Latte, while Natsu just ran his fingers through my hair, relaxing me even more.

"Lucy, your Panini is still there. Eat it or I will,"

I blinked, and frowned, raising my head from his comfy shoulder. "Oh, right, I-I'm good. This thing here is making me full," I said while sipping more of the coffee to prove my point.

"You haven't eaten anything since breakfast. It's almost five, how are you not hungry?" he asked, a concerned look in his green eyes.

"I swear this latte it's really filling. I'll take the Panini to the dorms, and eat it there at dinner, deal?"

He just stared at me, not convinced with my argument. A few seconds later, he nodded, and stretched his hand to shake mine. "Deal, but eat it. I don't want you go all skeletal on me,"

"I won't, I promise" I laughed.

"Alright! Let's go, we'll grab a taxi. This rain doesn't seem like it's stopping any time soon,"

I nodded looking in the window where the rain drops hit hard; it was probably quite windy too. I didn't think I could grow accustomed to this weather, too cold. Back in my hometown, the sun shined almost every day. It only rained four or five times in the year; here, it was a daily thing.

Once outside, it didn't take much time for Natsu to stop a taxi. It was just past five, but the clouds made it dark already, and the rain didn't rest for even a few seconds. I sighed, settling my head on the window, observing the water fall furious into the ground, and splashing.

"You okay?" I heard Natsu asked.

I looked over at him, put on a small smile in my face and nodded. "Yeah, it's just rain gets me down," I scrunched my nose. "I'm not used to it. From where I'm from it's always warm, and sunny,"

"It's only a matter of time before you get used to it; and then, those few days the sun comes out, you'll enjoy it even more," he said.

I chuckled at his optimism; he really was one of those people who just had the need to see the bright side of things.

"And here we are, kids," the driver said.

This time, Natsu was much faster than I was, and paid before I could even blink. He stuck his tongue out and I shook my head amused. We both mumbled a quick thank you, and ran from the rain towards the safety of Fairy Hills. Unfortunately, it took at least five minutes running to get to the lobby, so once inside, we were all wet, tiny droplets dripping from our hair to our faces.

"Shit, I really liked these sneakers!" I pouted, watching the once bright pink material all muddy, and I could how the water had sneaked into them, making my feet even colder. "I'll need new ones,"

"And I own you a new sweatshirt" Natsu noted sheepishly, eyeing my outfit which I knew was probably all dirty, and unusable. I glared at him, and he put his hand up, in a surrender form.

"Yes, you do,"

"Oh my god, what the hell happened to you two?!" a girly voiced shrieked.

I turned around to meet with a tiny blue haired girl, a fiery redhead, and, fuck my life, a whited haired girl who was staring and frowning at Natsu.

"Oh come on, we don't look that bad," Natsu whined, like a little kid.

"Pinky here thought it was a good idea to go hiking, push me into the mud, and tickle me to death," I explained with a glare directed towards the tall, male dancer. "Then, the rain happened, and a five minute run to the lobby,"

"Hiking?" the white haired witch questioned, eyes narrowed. "Natsu, I've been waiting for you for two hours. Mirajane and Laxus grew tired of waiting, so they left,"

"Oh fuck, fuck; that was today?" Lisanna nodded, anger visible in her pretty features. "I-I'm sorry Lis, I forgot,"

"Of course you did," she eyed at me, displeased with what she saw. "This is my career in the line, Natsu. You are supposed to be _my_ partner. This was a chance for the both of us to learn from the world's best. And you blew it away," and with one last scowl, she turned swiftly and headed to the dorms.

I looked over at Natsu who had a frustrated look in his eyes. He ran a hand through his hair, and left the place, without even saying a word. I bit my lip, feeling awful. Lisanna had said Mirajane and Laxus were waiting for them, two of the principal dancers of the Ishgal Theater; the chance to even talk to them or for them to give you advice was something important. They could give you recommendation letters, or pass the word to directors; and because of me, Natsu had given up on that chance apparently.

"Lu, come on, you're going to get sick like this," Levy said, tugging me to walk to our room.

Erza, who had been quiet this whole time finally talked. "Don't worry about Natsu. He needs to think for a while,"

"I feel terrible," I whispered. "Lisanna may not be my cup of tea, but…" I trailed off, unsure of how to phrase whatever I had inside.

"She means well, Lucy. She's complicated to get along with, but once you earn her respect, she's an amazing friend," Erza said.

"Yeah, and she's under a lot of pressure you know? Everyone in her family expects her to be exactly like Mirajane; it's hard to try and fill those shoes," Levy continued. I knew both of them meant well, but those words didn't really help with the feel of guilt in the pit of my stomach.

We kept on walking in complete silence until reaching mine and Levy's room. Erza invited herself in, and sat in Levy's bed, talking about whatever as I got into the bathroom.

I looked in the mirror to see a pale, drenched-from-head-to-toe girl. I tossed my dirty clothes aside, feeling lucky it wasn't my Mermaid Heel sweatshirt the one I had to dump. My black leggings also were muddy, but the soft material was slippery, easy to wash. And they were dark, so a spot or two wouldn't be noticeable. Maybe I could wash the sneakers, see if I can save them; in the meanwhile, I'd have to settle for the cross-trainers my dad gave me a while ago.

The self-inflicted wound in my arm sting a little, but it wasn't unbearable; it was still clean, and it didn't really need bandage.

I stayed in the shower for at least half an hour, scrubbing hard my hair to get rid of the dirt in it. "I can't believe I went into a coffee house looking like this; idiot Natsu, throwing me into the ground like that" I mumbled. As the words left my mouth, I start thinking again about the pink haired guy.

A sigh left my lips, as I wrapped myself in the white fluffy towel. I looked over, searching for something to wear. I widened my eyes when I realized there was no clothes for me to change.

_Shit._

If Erza saw my arm, she would freak out, and send me to talk to somebody, and that would be it. It would be too suspicious to walk out of the bathroom with my dirty clothes, after all, only the girls were in the room, why didn't I just walked out in my towel?

I opened to door, and took a look around, and damn I was a lucky girl. Erza was too busy snooping, and Levy was totally focused on reading a magazine

"Looking for something Erza?" I asked, as I ran to the trunk and snatched a long sleeved black crop top and a pair of bright pink harem pants, putting them over my arm, the wound now covered.

"I love your wardrobe," she answered, not bothering to even glance at me.

"Thanks?" I said, unsure of what was her point.

"What size are you?"

"Erza! If you like something, just try it on. I don't mind," I laughed, heading to the bathroom to change.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah!" I yelled through the door.

I slipped into my clothes, and braided my hair to the side. I finally looked presentable; not more mud was visible in my face, or hair. I step out, and found Levy and Erza both going through my clothes.

"Guys, come on, it's seven already, let's go grab something to eat, please,"

They both turned around, and looked ashamed of being caught. "Sorry Lu, I just love too much your clothes!" Levy said, walking to the door, and grabbing a little purse.

"Where do you wanna go?" Erza asked, finally leaving my clothes alone.

"Anywhere but the dining hall," I answered, grabbing an eco-leather jacket, and heading out with my two friends.

As we went down the stairs, I got distracted, observing the numerous doors in the hall, all belonging to female students–I had learned that boys had their rooms in the third floor– with the same aspirations as me. I was so busy staring I didn't realized Levy and Erza had already gone down. I hurried my steps and while turning to the stairs, I bumped into someone, and fell down to my butt.

"Ouch, I'm sorry, didn't see you" I apologized, stood up and founded myself face to face to a pretty, white haired devil.

"Of course it's you! Trying to injure me already?" Lisanna asked, her face hard, eyes narrowed.

"Hey! I said I'm sorry!" I retorted; I couldn't believe this girl.

"Look newbie, I don't want to have problems here. This school, is my life. And Natsu it's part of it. I need him, he needs me. We are good partnership, teacher have said we are the future of ballet for a long time now. So be a good girl, and stay away, and maybe, I can put a good word about you. Who knows? Maybe the corps of Ishgal will take you," she said, a sweet fake smile on her face.

How I wished I could wipe that smile off her face with a good punch.

I put on a similar smile. "Look, _sweety, _I don't care about your threats, or whatever you're trying to do. I've learned to look in my pointe shoes for glass already, so back off. I don't know what's the deal between you and Natsu, but I consider him my friend, and I'm not going to stop hanging out with him just because a stuck up, wannabe Prima Ballerina is telling me to fuck off in fancy words," I said in a low voice, my eyes just as narrowed as hers. We were the same height, so we were looking square in the eye of the other.

"Natsu is mine, remember that," she stated, pushing my shoulder.

I took a deep breath, and headed down the stairs, trying to forget what just transpired between the youngest Strauss and me.

_"__Well, welcome to the world of professional Ballet" _a tiny, annoying voice said in the back of my head.

* * *

**Wow, that took a while! It's not the best, but I needed a way to make the friendship between N and L grow a little, since it's an important part of the story. Also, I wanted to show a little of the essence of Lisanna; I know it's a cliche, but I need an antagonist. And she's the perfect example of what pressure, and expectations can do, and you'll see a lot more of this in the story.**

**Anyway, thank you for reading/following/reviewing! I'm open to suggestions ! **

**Lots of Love ! **


	8. Chapter 8

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail. I only like to play with its characters, and twist them to my own amusement. :3**_

* * *

The next day, I woke up without any major complication. No strange nightmares, nor anxiety crisis haunted me that nigh. At half past seven I was on my feet, ready to shower. Levy was still snoring softly. It was understandable. After all, we stayed out until late last night.

After my confrontation with mini-Strauss, I left with the girls to grab something to eat. Half way to a little diner which served Arab food, we met with Jellal and Gray who offered to escort us to the place. It had been quite fun, and made me forget all about the stupidity Lisanna had blabbed, but the thought of what was the deal with Natsu still nagged me. I tried pushing it to the back of my mind though. I didn't want to bother my friends with troublesome thoughts, and petty fights.

It had been a pleasant meal; we girls ordered Shawarma, and the boys, being the eating beasts they were, got themselves four_ kebabs_ each, and _Kabsa_, which I found out, was a traditional Arabian rice, with tons of spices, meat and steamed vegetables. Where all that food went, it was a mystery to me.

I got up and headed towards the shower; the hot water soothed me, while at the same time my arm stung. Luckily, I had an amazingly fast cicatrization, so the long gashes I had made to my arm with my own nails (how, it was beyond my knowledge), would start scaring soon.

It hit me then. It was Thursday already. Only four days left to start classes. All of a sudden, it became hard to breathe. What if I messed up? What I proved Lisanna Strauss right? That I wasn't fit for ballet; that I just wasn't suited to be there_._

I gulped, and shook my head, trying to clear my head. I _was_ fit for it. I had got in. It wasn't a fluke. Ballet was my life, and I belonged in the academy. And I was ready to give my all in class for the next three years, and then, I would get a job, and keep dancing for a living. I was _not_ going to give up.

I quickly stepped out of the shower; this time I had actually brought clothes to change into. Some ballet pink tights under loose black and white knitted warm up shorts, the same long sleeved crop top I had used the night before, exposing my toned abs, and my light pink Bloch's warm up booties. They were the most comfortable thing for barre training, and of course, to rest my feet after a pointe lesson. Of course, they weren't permitted in actual class, I had to wear soft ballet shoes for that, bur for my own practice, they worked well.

I threw my hair into a messy bun, and quietly made my way out of the room, Levy's soft snores the only thing being heard in the place.

Nobody was seen in the hallway; most were probably still in their rooms, in the arms of Morpheus, so I tried to be as silent as I could. I made my way to the dining room; only one table was being used, and it was occupied by the one and only Mirajane Strauss, and…

Laxus Dreyar?!

He was the grandson of Makarov Dreyar, the headmaster of the Fairy Tail. Just like his grandfather, he was an extremely talented dancer, and a celebrity in Fiore. A handsome twenty-two year old guy, with messy blonde hair, and a well-worked body most guys tried to get by killing themselves in a gym.

Mirajane was wearing a simple spaghetti strap white leotard, and black Ripstop pants, her feet adorned with worn out pointe shoes. I could see from where I stood a few hairs making their way out of her bun, indicating that they had been practicing early.

I made my way to the table where the food was, so I could eat fast and leave the place; I felt too intimidated by them. I grabbed a plastic tray, and placed a bottled water, an apple, and a yogurt parfait with granola in it. I would skip my morning coffee, since I only wanted to get out of there.

Of course, luck was not on my side.

"Hey! Lucy right?" a soft voice said behind me. My heart raced, as I jumped startled. "Oh! I'm so sorry! I just saw you here alone, and thought it would be nice to say hi,"

I widened my eyes, not knowing what the hell to say. She looked beautiful up close, her face completely make up free, some white hairs framing her face, as if they were rebelling against her bun. She had the perfect body for classical ballet. Her arms were beautifully soft, even then, standing up, she looked like something out of a fairy tale; a nymph, a swan, a fairy; she could be anything. Tiny frame, long graceful limbs, her posture made her look like royalty, she was everything a ballerina should be.

"Y-yes, hi," I stuttered, my voice barely audible.

"Come sit with me and my partner! I love to meet the new students," she smiled at me, grabbing my tray, and tilting her head as if saying "this way".

"S-sure,"

_"__Dammit! Stop stuttering like an idiot" _yelled the annoying, subconscious voice in my head.

I followed her to the corner where she and Laxus sat. The blonde guy raised an eyebrow to Mirajane, and sighed, stretching his hand to me. "Sup? Laxus Dreyar," he said, as I shook his hand.

"Lucy Heartfilia," I answered in a low voice, trying to not look in his eyes. I sat next to Mirajane, and played with the cap of the bottle.

"I loved you audition. Giselle, peasant variation. My favorite ballet," sighed the white haired ballerina, a dazed look on her face. I noticed she was trying to establish a conversation.

I blushed, not believing what I was hearing. "It's a beautiful ballet. And it's an amazing piece, I'm not sure I made it justice," I replied, my voice low, and shy.

"Oh you're too modest! Laxus, darling, I swear, she was amazing. She transported me to an early century. I could almost see the village behind her" her eyes were shining, looking to nothing in concrete.

I watched her stunned at her words. I couldn't believe _the _Mirajane Strauss was complimenting me.

Laxus eyed me, and I felt suddenly really self-conscious. "Easy Mira, I think we are intimidating her," he grinned in a friendly way. "Early riser?" I nodded, biting my lip. "How about we watch your practice? We have to catch a train in a few hours, and we have nothing better to do,"

"I-I couldn't impose on you like that," I answered flustered. I didn't want to waste their time; and mostly, I didn't want to see the disappointment in their eyes when they saw me dancing.

"It's not problem at all! I would love to help you! It's an amazing opportunity for both of us. I'm sure you can learn a thing or two from us," Mira said, excitement dripping in every word.

"Lesson one, don't be so shy. We aren't much different from you," Laxus said, obviously entertained with my awkwardness.

"A-Alright," I finally opened my bottle, and sipped the water.

Mira smiled. "Finish you breakfast, grab a protein bar, and meet us at the third studio. It's downstairs; when you enter the gym, you'll see a door with a number three painted on it. See ya!" she stood with all the elegance a person could, and walked away, Laxus following her close, and winking at me.

I blushed hard, and tried to swallow my breakfast, gathering all my strength to not freak out and throw up; all because I, Lucy Heartfilia, was going to have a private practice along with two of the best dancers the world had to give. They wanted to _watch me. _

I ate half of my yogurt, bit twice my apple, and downed the water in five minutes. I left the tray in the table, hurrying to the food table once again, and grabbing another water, and a mixed berries protein bar, following the older ballerina's advice. Just as I left the dining room, a three other persons I didn't know entered. They gave me a small smile, and muttered "good morning". I nodded in acknowledgement, giving them a smile of my own.

The gym wasn't hard to find. You just needed to follow the stairs downward, and then, you would find yourself in a long, spacious hallway, which led to a glass double door. The gym was enormous, divided in cardio, in minus one floor, and weight training in the minus two. Two doors stood in the first plant, one in the east wall, while the other was located in the north, with number one and two painted in it respectively. I took once again the stairs, and descended to the weight training area. At the south wall of the room, I found a black double door with the number three painted in white.

I walked towards it. Once I was facing it, I took a deep breath, trying to calm my fast beating heart.

I opened it slowly, and saw Mirajane already stretching one leg up in the bar. I couldn't believe she was still wearing her pointes; I knew for a fact how tortuous those things were. Laxus was on the floor, stretching as well, and I couldn't help the blush creeping in my face as I took in his look: the black shirt he was wearing early, was discarded to one side, exposing his _gorgeous_ abs, and black ripstop pants. He was the first to notice me.

"Did you even chew your breakfast?" he asked in an amused voice, both eyebrows raised.

I rolled my eyes, and dropped my bag to a corner, along with the water. I grabbed my theraband, took off my warm booties, and started stretching my feet, so they could be ready for what I could guess would be an intense practice.

"Well, well, she's ignoring me now! How much did the little girl change in a matter of minutes," he continued, trying in every way to mock me. Who would have guess the serious, composed Laxus Dreyar, principal of the Ishgal Theater, and grandson of the great Makarov Dreyar was this much of a bully?!

"My god, Laxus! You're acting like a child. Stop it, and please, would it kill you to wear a shirt?" snapped Mirajane, throwing her arms over her head.

"Why? Do I make you nervous Strauss?" he replied, his lips forming a smug grin.

"Dreyar, we've been dancing together for what? Four years already? And dating for almost two years. I've seen it everything, love," Mirajane countered, a sly smile made her expression.

I choked a laugh at the interaction, and continued to try to focus on my own routine. I had no idea they were dating; and the way they acted with each other, made think of Natsu.

_"__Get it together!" _the voice in the back of my head yelled. I flinched inwardly remembering the events of the day before, and now, here I was in the place he and Lisanna should've been if wasn't for our little hiking trip.

"I'm sorry Lucy, he's an asshole. I promise I'll keep him in a tight leash for the rest of the practice," Mirajane teased, a gentle smile in her face as she sat next to me.

I joined her laughed. "It's okay," I replied timidly.

"So, well do a normal barre class. Follow our lead; then I'll look into your variations, and maybe I'll lend you Laxus for a Pas de Deux," she winked, standing up, and stretching her hand towards me. I grabbed it, and followed her to the bar.

I could see myself in every wall. It was a studio full of mirrors, and that would make it easier since I loved looking my body when practicing technique. It made realize every mistake, every flaw I was making, and correct it. I grabbed a place alone to the left of the white haired ballerina, so I could follow her easily, but also focus on my own movement. Laxus just stayed behind her, just a few feet of distance.

A soft piano music started playing in the background and I lost myself in a sequence of pliés, tendus, and dégagés. By the time we were practicing the grand battements I understood why Laxus didn't like to practice with his shirt on. My back felt sticky, covered in sweat, and even though I was wearing a crop top, the long sleeved didn't help much. My already messy bun was even messier, and I found myself not being able to keep with the prima ballerina, and I wasn't even on pointes.

We finished the warm up with an adagio. I watched Mirajane's pose closely, observing how soft the transitions of her developpés were. I felt the sweat forming in my brow as I passed my extended leg from the front to the back in a full ront de jambe. From the arabesque I went into an almost 180° degree penche, breathing deeply, trying not to lose focus. When the music stopped I dropped my leg ungracefully, and tried to catch my breath.

"What an awful form you have, Blondie," Laxus remarked, and I could hear his damn smug smirked in his voice.

"I'm just a student," I managed to counter between gasps. "And you're blonde too, asshole,"

"Oh, talking back now?"

I was about to snap to him again, when the door of the studio opened and closed soundly. I looked over my shoulder and found myself staring into a deep green pair of eyes.

"Oh my gosh! Natsu!" Mirajane ran and hugged him. "It's been a while," she said with a soft tender smile.

"M-Mira?" Natsu asked stunned. "I thought you had already left,"

"We leave at noon," Laxus replied, walking towards him. "How are you doing, man?"

I watched the exchange, biting my lip, and praying to disappear. I didn't want to practice with him. I didn't want him to watch me dance, just to see the disappointment in his eyes when he saw I wasn't good enough. I kept my back to him, and sat and the floor into middle splits, trying to not let my muscles go cold.

"Lucy?" I heard his voice ask. I closed my eyes, and cursed. Of course he was going to see me, it's not like I had a place to hide.

I gave a tight smile. "Natsu, hey,"

"Oh, you two know each other?" Mirajane asked, stretching her arms over her head, curiosity written on her baby blue eyes.

I opened my mouth to answer, but Laxus beat me. "Of course they do Mira. They are in the same year,"

I frowned. What? It wasn't a necessity to know each other just because we were in the same year; I had at least twenty something other classmates I didn't know. Yet.

"We met at audition week," Natsu said, dropping unceremoniously his shoulder dance bag next to mine.

"Audition week? What? About to get kicked out Dragneel?" Laxus mocked, putting his foot on Natsu's head, who had sat to stretch and warm his muscles a bit. I could almost see a vein popping out of his head in irritation.

Wow, Laxus Dreyar could really be a royal pain in the ass if set his intentions to be one.

"Love, could you please go get me another bottle of water?" Mirajane asked in an overly sweet tone which made the hairs of my neck stand up.

Apparently, it wasn't only me. Natsu froze, and shivered violently, and I heard the blonde dancer gulped loudly, then, after a few fast steps, the door closed loudly.

_"__Well, that was intense…" _my subconscious commented, and I could only mentally nod.

"Natsu, would you like to go over your variations? I was about to help Lucy with hers" the white haired ballerina asked, grabbing a bunch of CD's next to the stereo we had used for the past forty-five minutes.

"Sure!" he answered, grinning widely. "Let me warm up a bit. Lucerina! You go first, I'll watch," he winked to me, and I found myself blushing madly.

_"__Oh, hell be damned… I hate my life"_

* * *

**_Now that took a while... I know the characters are a bit OoC, but it's a necessity. I hope you like it :) Of course, thanks to all those who review, follow and favorite this story! I really appreciate it! I'll try to update more often! Please, let me know what you think of the story! I need the criticism. Lots of love! _**


	9. Chapter 9

_**Disclaimer. I don't own Fairy Tail. I just like to messed with the characters a little bit :)**_

* * *

Twenty minutes later, after warming up my pointes with some center work, my hands started sweating as Mirajane asked what track the music of my variation was.

My heart was thumping hard and loud. I could hear the blood rushing to every part of my body. It wasn't even a presentation in large scale. There was only Natsu, who was warming up in the barre, Mirajane and Laxus, who had arrived with an iced bottle of water for his lovely girlfriend. I didn't have to be nervous.

I knew the variation. I had known it for years.

Kitri, from Don Quixote, was the second variation Madam Sylvia had taught me, just two weeks after I managed to perfect the Princess Florine one, from The Sleeping Beauty.

It was short, under a minute. It was part of the finale of the first act of the ballet, just before Kitri, daughter of an inn-keeper, and Basilio, a barber, ran away from the town, because her father didn't want them to be together. It was feisty, and energetic, very flirty too, showing off to her love everything she could do.

"Whenever you're ready Lucy," Mirajane said, a soft smile on her face. I smiled back, and took a deep breath. I could feel the pain of my pointes already, the hard material cracking a little under a bit of pressure. I rolled my shoulders, trying to relax; otherwise, there was no way I could play the carefree, wild girl from the streets of early Renaissance Spain.

"Oh shit, get on with it Blondie!" the older dancer yelled, exasperated. I glared at him, and smirked when Mirajane slapped the back of his head hard.

I nodded at the white haired prima, and the lively music from the Spanish novel-made ballet filled the large studio. I face lit up with a huge smile, as I ran in demi-pointe, around the place.

I no longer felt the confinement of the studio or of the dorm. I could hear the happy voices of my friends, feel the excitement of the villagers, and the love of my Basilio. I could sense the flirty looks the toreadors were giving me. I was completely immersed in the world of Don Quixote.

I leg effortlessly lifted into the air in a grand battement, and then straight into a pirouette. My feet yelled in pain when the moment for little hops, in a very Spanish-dance-likeness, arrived, but I couldn't seem to care. I was having the time of my life, showing off my extension, flirting with the one I wanted to spend my life.

I felt as light as a feather to jump the grand sisonnes; at that very instance I felt invincible, I felt gorgeous, nothing could ever go wrong. Light steps directed me to a diagonal, I could see the toreadors with their red capes, making space so I could make the 16 pirouettes the choreography demanded. My cheeks hurt from smiling so much, I was close to end, I had shown Basilio my whole personality, and I had shown him my worth.

14…15…16. I doubled the last pirouette and finished in an attitude derriere, my right foot stretched nicely on pointe, my back slightly curved, as if my head wanted to touch the back of the lifted leg.

The music stopped, and I was back into Fairy Tail's dorm. My chest raised and fell in rapid paces, trying to get the much needed oxygen into my lungs. My abdominals were glistening with sweat, and my back felt sticky; but I felt amazing. For a long time, it had been hard to get used to the idea of belonging to one of the best dance academies. Since I was accepted, or even before that, my mind had convinced itself that I would never be enough, but in that moment, everything fell in place.

Fairy Tail was where I was supposed to be, period.

"Strauss, you should watch your back. I think I want to switch partners," a loud booming voice laughed; Laxus, of course.

I blushed at the compliment, and was scared of what Mirajane would say. I didn't want her to think I wanted to steal her guy. Lisanna's on the other hand…

Mirajane's bell-like laugh snapped me out of my paranoia. "Oh, darling. You're too old for her. I think Gray would suit her better. Good height, strong too. Gorgeous technique, even if he started a bit old" she mused, although the last part was mostly to herself than us.

A snort in the far south of the studio drew my attention. Oh, right. Gray was his so called rival; although it was obvious both thought of each other as a best friend, or even a brother.

"Oh please, that idiot can barely lift _Levy, _who's what? Eighty pounds?_" _the pink haired boy stated with a roll of eyes.

"Don't be jealous, Natsu!" Mirajane chastised. "You are great too, it's just, I'm so used to see you with Lis, I can't think of you with another dancer," she explained with an apologetic look in her kind eyes.

Ouch. That hurt more than I wanted to admit.

"I know," Natsu sighed. "Mira, remember this semester is mandatory to change partners. So don't get your hopes too high," he reminded her, looking into the ground.

_"__Stupid butterflies, stop fluttering so much!"_ I mentally growled, as my body warmed up at the thought of having Natsu as a partner.

"At the end of the semester, when you get stuck with someone permanently, I _know_ it'll be Lisanna. You guys are perfect for each other!" she beamed, and then turned to me, not noticing my gloomy expression. "Okay Lucy! Back to work. Your variation was so great. You owned Kitri's character!" she complimented, her face never losing her smile.

"Congrats Blondie, it was something to be proud," Laxus said, slapping softly my back. "Now, grab my arm and go into that final attitude," he ordered, leaving no room for discussion.

I looked at him confused, but did it anyway. My left hand grabbing firmly his forearm to stabilize myself en pointe.

"Relax into your extension Lucy. You have great turn out, and it makes your lines look amazing, but the moment you go into either an arabesque or an attitude derriere, you tense your hip, and yes, it still looks good, but we want it to look great, so relax," Mirajane explained softly, her hand pressing a side of my hip bone.

I tried to localize my psoas muscle, and force it to relax, but I couldn't, the strain probably showing in my face, because Mirajane kept trying to massage where my turn out took place.

"Push your ribs up, Blondie, and breath. Just let go, I won't let you fall," Laxus said.

I did as he said, and lift my ribs, and just let my upper body relax into the attitude. My lower back curved slightly upwards, my head raised, my neck released every bit of tension, and, finally, my left leg automatically lifted, making feel the movement so much natural. I heard clapping, and let the leg fall, my right foot in pain after little less than a minute statically en pointe.

"Yes! Perfect. Okay, you may rest for a bit. Stretch, and take off your pointes while I watch Natsu. Then we'll try a Pas de Deux?" Mirajane raised both eyebrows, a suggestive tone in her voice, her eyes pleading me to say yes.

So I nodded.

She clapped and giggled, like a teenage would after being asked by her crush to a date. Natsu was already in the center; I hadn't had the time to admire how great he looked in his tight white shirt, and black-ballet tights, showing every bit of his hard-lean muscle.

And, oh my effing god. What is with ballet guys and their butts?! Why did their backsides seemed like they were hand-carved? And why the fuck was I day-dreaming about (maybe) licking his gorgeous, hard-rock abs?! Fucking hormones. Fucking teenage years.

"Which one Natsu?" Mirajane asked.

"Track three Mira," he replied, standing close to a diagonal, his face to me; his body exuded confidence, and he smirked when the first note of a famous ballet piece started playing.

My jaw dropped at his boldness. The variation of Ali, from _Le Corsaire, _it was one of the most technically challenging the ballet world knew, often performed at competitions, so the dancer could prove his worth. And we female dancers just loved this particular variation for the mere fact it was danced shirtless in performances.

But watching _Natsu,_ dance the part of the charming slave Ali, was just breathtaking. I knew I shouldn't had been so surprised, him being son of a genetically perfect ballet couple, but still, I was in awe. I just wasn't able to take my eyes off him, even if he wasn't shirtless (although I wished he was).

His jumps made him like he was flying effortlessly across the studio, as if gravity was just not an issue. His body made perfect lines in attitudes, his chest lifted, and his hands strong. A strong, determined look adorned his gorgeous face, but the smile made him look carefree as he, in his character, vowed to be the protagonist's devoted slave. My heart started beating fast as I watched him do the fouettes. His body never moving from his designated spot. And I swear, my heart just stopped working the moment I saw him do the pirouette. He was stunningly amazing. I wanted to sneak a peek of Mirajane and Laxus' faces, but I just couldn't look away from the pink haired dancer in front of me.

He finished swiftly with a _tour en l'air_, but missed his step at the landing. He covered it quickly, going into a final pose in his knee, his right arm extended over his head, and his forehead covered in a thick layer of sweat.

I clapped in a daze along Mira, when Laxus booming laugh snapped me out of my Natsu-dancing-induced-trance.

"You keep missing the last step. Idiot," he pointed out, smiling smugly, probably because he thought Natsu wasn't anywhere near his level, and he was just so awesome.

I snorted, and rolled my eyes; I opened my mouth to comment on his silliness, seeing as Natsu was just a seventeen year old boy, while he was an experimented twenty something dancer, with a stable job, that meant dancing at least eight hours a day, without counting performances, but Mirajane beat me.

"Darling, I think you're going to have to do your own, _manual, _work for two weeks. You're grounded," she deadpanned, and I had the slight suspicion she didn't mean actual physical related work. In fact, I'm sure she meant it as in "no-_pleasure_-for-you-big-boy" way, seeing as Laxus just groaned, and slammed his head against the barre.

Natsu growled at him, while snatching a bottle of water and drinking half its contents in one go. He plummeted next to me, and grinned oh, so innocently. As if he didn't know he was so damn sexy, and made me blush just by being in the same room as me. "So? Whaddya think?"

"It was incredible Natsu, congrats," I said sincerely, with a (probably lovesick) soft smile on my face.

His grin widened. "Thanks Luce, you were incredible too. I hope I get to pas de deux at least once with ya!" he then frowned, and his face lightened up. "Wait a minute! You've never done partnering! I remember I said I would help you!"

Oh crap. I really hoped he didn't remember his stupid promised. Especially now, in front of Mirajane and Laxus.

The white haired looked at me, one perfectly shaped eyebrow lifted. "Never done a Pas de Deux? Shit, you've got it hard Lucy. How come?" she asked, a worried frown now decorating her pretty face.

"I come from a small town; there were barely ten of us at the studio, less alone one guy. So, never had the opportunity I guess," I answered with a shrug.

She sighed, a tiny pout in her lips. "I would love to help you, but I have to take a shower, and change before leaving. But, I'll leave you in good hands! I'm sure our lovely Natsu here will help. Right Natsu?" she said, the same overly sweet tone she had used before on Laxus dripping on her words, making my hairs once again stand.

Natsu visible gulped, and nodded, his face turning unnaturally pale. "O-of course,"

Mirajane turned to her nice, perfect-ballerina demeanor, and plastered a dazzling smile on her face. She faced me, and then hugged me. I numbly returned it, not knowing what the heck was happening. "It was so nice meeting you, Lucy. I hope you pay a visit. We can hang out, go out and find you some nice hunk who can buy you drinks," she whispered, and I knew for sure my whole body was bright red because of the embarrassment. She looked at me and winked. "I won't tell if you don't,"

"Bye Mirajane, thank you so much, for everything," I smiled at her back, trying to convey my whole hearted appreciation in every word.

She hugged Natsu, and muttered something to him I didn't quite catch, but it made him do a sour face.

Laxus just waved, and messed Natsu's hair, and then left, laughing loudly, with a lazy arm hung over Mirajane's shoulder.

I watched them leave stunned, not believing my eyes.

. .. What the fuck just happened? Mirajane was definitely not the sweet girl everyone thought she was. And she had just offered me to go to visit her so we could go for an effing drink.

I was just sixteen for fuck's sake. Even if I swore a damn lot–and I blame that on the TV, really– and usually acted a lot older than I was, I was still _sixteen, _I couldn't drink!

…

Okay. Lie. I had gotten pretty drunk once with my classmates, but I honestly didn't know the punch was spiked. It was pretty sweet and tasty, and before I knew it I was throwing up outside on the balcony of my friend's house. But that had been the only time…

Pinky swear.

"Not what you expected?" the deep voice of the guy across me asked. I looked at him, as he tried to keep warm while doing some barre exercises.

"Definitely not," I replied laughing, sitting and untying my pointes. One of my toenails was turning black, and blisters were shining in most of my toes. I sighed loudly, as I just slipped in my warmup booties.

I almost moaned in pleasure; after being almost forty five minutes in those torture devices called pointe shoes, the soft, warm fabric of the booties was like a piece of heaven.

"God, I don't know how you ballerinas withstand that," Natsu said, visible shuddering.

"We like to look pretty on stage," I answered absentmindedly, rolling my shoulder to relax the tense muscles there. And then of course, like in some kind of freaking chick flick, a warm hand start massaging the exact spot it hurt.

I now actually did moaned. It had been too long since anyone massaged my shoulders.

"My mom had me learning some massaging techniques, just in case" he replies to my unasked question, putting a bit more of pressure, as I closed my eyes blissfully.

"Oh, you've got no idea how much I appreciate you mom right now," I sighed, as he kept working his (amazing) magic.

"So hey, today there's this party, at an abandoned warehouse, fancy to come?" he said, trying to sound all casual, while still massaging my sore, tense filled muscles.

I frowned. "What? A party?" I questioned, my voice not hiding my skepticism. "And we rich, stuck up ballet dancer are invited?"

He chuckled. "Oh come on! It's an annual thing. It's just an hour away from here, everyone from the schools here go. We don't get to do this much once the year starts,"

"Mm… and let me guess, I totally have to go because it's going to be epic?" I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes.

"We just started going last year, it's sixteen and up. It's Magnolia tradition. Take it as an initiation. It's a chance to get wasted, high, or whatever you want,"

I froze, and turned around to face him, my face probably completely scandalized. "What the…? Fuck Natsu, what the hell is wrong with you! Alcohol and drugs? Are you…" I took a deep breath and tried to keep the volume to a minimum. "Are you fucking crazy?" I loud-whispered him.

It was his turn to roll his eyes. "It's not a big deal, Lucerina, relax. We are not some kind of saints. I mean, yeah, we are working towards a career, but that doesn't mean we can't have fun," he shrugs, and tries to turn me around to keep the massaging. And as much as I wanted it, I stood up, took my bag and stomped out of the place.

He didn't even tried to follow me, probably thinking I needed some space.

But everything was so messed up. What in the world was that? A party to do whatever we want? To get drunk and drugged, and just throw everything down the board? Really?

It seemed too fucked up. Why would Natsu be even interested in that? Was everyone in this school really into fucking your body up like that?

Because if it was like that, then I didn't want anything to do with it.

And just like that, I ran as hard as could to my room, because I wanted nothing more than to cry my eyes out, trying to forget that maybe the pink haired boy I met, most definitely was not the person I thought he was.

He was just a teenager who could dance well, but didn't give two shit to his future.

He was just a teenager who wanted to have fun.

And as I got into my empty room, Levy nowhere to be seen, I realized I envied him for that.

For being allowed to have fun. Because even if he made some fucked up choices, he was still that amazing dancer who danced his heart out. That amazing dancer who seemed so… _free._

_And there was no way I could ever be like that._

* * *

**Hi everyone! Thank you so much for reading my story. And thanks to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and followed the story, it makes me so happy that you are enjoying it ! I made some changes to the summary, because I finally know where I want this to go, and the inspiration came to me talking with a friend. We were talking about my first year abroad. I was seventeen, and spending a semester in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and I met this older dancer who was amazing, and he talked me into this party where I kinda passed out... Not proud of it, but it made realized just how much of my adolescence I was missing out. Of course then when I went to class I thought I was crazy for thinking partying and being "normal" was better than dedicating my life to ballet, but then I went back to Spain, and realized, a lot of my mates sneaked around to fool around, and live their lives; and it hit me : it's not bad to try and live a little, as long as you do it responsibly. And no drugs! This will be only for the fiction... **

**Lots of Love! :3 (And I based Lucy's fool mouth off of me ... I do swear a little bit too much... hehe)**


End file.
